Before We Met
by PunkPinkPower
Summary: Hunter and Cam met long before they became rangers, they just didn’t know it.
1. The First Moment That Mattered

_AN: This is going to be an incredible task to try and finish, but here is the first chapter of one of my all time favorite ideas that I finally got the courage to write. I can't promise I will update this often, but I hope you'll follow it and enjoy it!_

**Before We Met**

Cam awoke easily, a good five minutes before the alarm went off. He starred at the ceiling absently, then finally he sat up and rolled out of bed, a usual routine. The alarm was really just for security; Cam had his own inner alarm. He turned it off and sat there, starring at the wall.

No dreams. Not even one.

He didn't know why he had expected that having the amulet would suddenly change things. He thought that maybe after having such a strange experience with his mother that maybe… just maybe he would start dreaming. A nightmare at least. Anything.

But it had been 2 weeks since he'd gotten the amulet, and nothing had changed. He had never dreamed before, not even when he was young, and there was no reason for him to start dreaming now.

He stood and walked to his closet, flipping on the lights to his room on the way. He pulled out his training uniform and laid it on the bed, pulling out a pair of pants and a shirt along with it. He dressed in the cloths and then slid his training uniform over them. Then came his glasses, and finally he combed through his hair.

He stood and looked in the mirror. The amulet hung heavily around his neck; a symbol of something he didn't quite understand, and probably never would. He hadn't been able to decide yet if being a ranger was really all it was cracked up to be. He wasn't sure he liked some of the changes in himself because of the amulet, and there were things he had expected that hadn't quite turned out right.

He had become more and more active, finding it hard to sit at his desk all day as before. Training had been easier, and his ninja skills had become sharpened and fine tuned. He hadn't expected his body to get in that good of shape that quickly, but it had, and he hadn't felt a thing. With the power coursing through his veins there seemed to be a green tint to everything these days.

Of course, his father had warned him that being a ranger was never what one expected it to be. He had been right. Of course. Like always.

Cam sighed once more and prepared himself to meet with his teammates in only a few moments. Sliding on his shoes, he left his room, and locked the door behind him.

Ninja ops was mostly quiet, save for a rustling he heard from the kitchen. He walked through to the small kitchenette and bumped into a crimson training outfit and cursed.

"Woo, sorry Cam. You shouldn't sneak up on people." Hunter told him as he balanced a bowl of cereal in one hand and the entire jug of milk in the other. His ever obnoxious grin was present even at the early hour.

"I wasn't sneaking. Don't you two eat breakfast at your own house?" Cam asked, annoyed as Hunter sidestepped him back into the training area, and Blake followed him out of the kitchen.

"Dude, with what we make at Storm Chargers, we're lucky we have a place to sleep. We can't afford groceries!" Blake chimed in, joining his brother at the table. Cam rolled his eyes, going into the kitchen to grab an orange, or something.

When he came back out the Bradley brothers were already on their third bowl of cereal. While Cam used to 'rag' on them for that, he understood now what being a ranger did to you. It increased your metabolism ten-fold. You're stamina was doubled too. And if the wind and thunder ninja's had thought Cam a terror to behold before he became a ranger, they hadn't seen anything yet.

He leaned against the consol and pealed his orange with all his concentration, for lack of something better to think about.

As the three students ate in silence (except for the occasional sniggering of the Bradley brothers) his father emerged from his habitat cart. Sometimes, Cam still expected him to walk out of his regular room down the hall as a normal human being, instead of a furry little creature.

"Good morning, Blake, Hunter. Good morning, Cameron." Sensei bowed respectfully to each of his students.

"Morning Sensei," the Bradley brothers said in unison.

"Good morning, father. Sleep well?" Cam asked, going over to pour his father some guinea pig food.

"Very well indeed, thank you my son." His father began to nibble on the food, and Cam went back to his orange.

"So Sensei, what have we got planned for today?" Blake wanted to know. "Simulated fight training in the deserts? Treasure hunts in the Amazon? Maybe just some regular sparing, for a change?" Blake's tone told everyone how tired he was of the preprogrammed scenarios, and Cam couldn't deny that was the general consensus of the rangers. He seemed to be finished with his cereal, but Hunter was pouring a fourth bowl.

"Indeed, Blake, today we will focus on combining our elements to achieve a common goal, as is often needed in battle." His father grabbed another bite of food, and then hopped down to the table Hunter was still eating at. "However, if you would still be up for it after, I'm sure I could put sparing into today's training." His father didn't see Blake's look of anguish, which was probably for the best.

"Isn't that a little dangerous?" Cam wondered aloud, eyeing the Bradley's. "The elemental combination, I mean, not the sparing. Isn't that a 4th year thing?" Thunder was not something Cameron Watanabe preferred to mess with. Let the Bradley's injure themselves on their own time.

"Perhaps it is considered an advanced tactic by some older, more arrogant ninjas," his father gave him a pointed look, which was a strange thing for a guinea pig. "However I feel that the rangers have accomplished a sufficient amount of training to be ready for such a test. The time may soon come when you all may be tested, and this skill might come in handy before then, if you are willing enough to learn it." Sometimes Cam thought his father looked more noble and threatening as a guinea pig than he ever had as a human.

Cam sighed and bit into his orange, glancing warily at the Thunder rangers. Taming thunder was not something he was looking forward to.

* * *

Cam sputtered as another splash of water hit him in the face. He sighed and reached up to wipe the water from his eyes.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Tori called to him from a little ways away. Compared to this, fighting off Shane's air attack and Dustin's dirt had been easy. At least theirs didn't leave him soaking wet.

"It's all right, let's just try it again." He told Tori as patiently as he could. She shot him one of her smiles and returned to her position.

Cam hoisted his bokken up as Tori began to pull the water around her into a sphere in her hands. He focused his energy on it before she'd even began to move it towards him. It came at him in one solid wave, and he slid his bokken through it and divided it around him. He forced his mind to control the space around him, and the water surrounded him. He made his mind focus on lifting them, and this time Tori was ready for it, so she didn't protest, but her stream of water that surrounded them wavered a bit without the ground beneath her.

After what seemed like an incredibly long second he felt the water stop as Tori held it in place, and Cam focused his bokken up towards the sky. Cam's green energy surrounded by Tori's stream of water shot upwards, and Cam smiled as he lowered them back down to the ground.

"Alright Cam!" Tori said as she clasped his hand in hers. "That wasn't hard at all."

"Sure. No big deal." Cam rolled his eyes. Tori smiled back at him.

"Well done, Tori, Cameron. You have demonstrated an understanding of each other's elements not yet established by any of the other trials." Sensei nodded to them as the others converged around them.

Tori shot him a sideways glance. "Thank you sensei." She told the guinea pig. Cam nodded respectively to his father, but said nothing.

"I believe we should switch partners now, and try again with new elements." Sensei turned and surveyed the students for a moment. "Tori, you will work with Shane. Blake and Dustin, please take the second area. And that leaves-"

"Hunter." Cam cut his father off. "Great."

Hunter shot him a glare. "Don't sound so excited." He turned his back and headed towards the area where he had been working with Dustin a moment before. Cam rolled his eyes, but followed reluctantly.

Hunter placed himself a short distance away from Cam, closer than Tori had. Cam took a step back, and Hunter stepped forward. They repeated this three times before Cam frowned.

"I don't like being this close." He told Hunter evenly. Hunter shrugged.

"Too bad. Thunder and lightning are fast elements. You gotta think fast and act faster." Hunter positioned himself to begin, and Cam tried not to glare at him.

Cam placed his Bokken over his head, waiting for Hunter to begin. He waited. And waited. Hunter's eyes were closed and his arms crossed, hands positioned on either side of his face. He wasn't moving. Cam waited another few moments, and then let his stance down.

He opened his mouth to tell Hunter to hurry up, but he never got the words out. Hunters hand shot up and lightning shot right at Cam. He raised his Bokken out of instinct and struggled to deflect Hunter's energy. Hunter's lightning split and surrounded him just as Tori's water had moments before. Cam's ears roared, and he realized belatedly that was part of Hunter's element as well; the Thunder. He wondered if the others had experienced it this way. He didn't have time to think about it though, because he felt his footing slip. He pushed forward with his mind, trying to contain the force around him.

It wasn't easy. If he made any progress in one place, he lost his hold somewhere else. It became increasingly difficult to stay focused as time went on, and he wanted to tell Hunter to lighten up. This was different than practicing with the others; if he and Tori screwed up he got wet. If he and Hunter screwed up he got electrocuted.

Hunter's lighting swarmed around him, and Cam felt lost in the chaos. Desperate to get out of the situation, he pushed forward hard. He was met with a blinding light in his eyes, and suddenly he found himself lifted, falling backwards. He could do nothing be brace himself for a fall that didn't come. Time stood still for what felt like forever as Cam tried to clear his vision, but all around him was that same blinding light. For the briefest of moments Cam thought he might have died, but all thoughts stopped when he saw them.

_Those eyes_… He knew those eyes. Deep dark pools of sadness stared back at him in the light, and he could see nothing but those eyes. A rush of calm swept over him and he found himself the most peaceful he had ever been.

But then the feeling was gone, and he crashed to the ground, unable to breathe. He heard hurried footsteps around him, coming closer, but as he lie on the ground he could do nothing but star blankly at the sky above him.

"Cam!" He heard a voice shout. He heard more shouts, but they weren't his name. Someone helped him sit up, but he still couldn't make sense of anything…

Until he saw _him_. As quickly as it had come, the peaceful feeling vanished only to be replaced by unfathomable burning rage.

"You!" Cam called to Hunter as he stood up. "What did you do?!" He yelled, almost jogging towards the other boy. Hunter had stood, and instead of slowing just before he met the other boy, he used his momentum to knock the other boy backwards.

Hands held him back, and he registered other people were around him again. The rangers. Blake was quick to defend his brother, but Cam couldn't even hear what he was saying. His ears were ringing.

"Me?!" Hunter's voice was perfectly clear in his ears as he answered incredulously. "I didn't do anything!"

"You must have done something!" Cam snapped back at him. Hunter glowered at him from where he was, and Cam felt the rage inside him about to take over.

He was one second away from pushing the Navy Thunder ranger aside and tearing the Crimson Thunder to pieces when a commanding voice he had known all his life demanded his attention.

"That is enough!" Sensei joined the group, almost yelling to be heard over all the voices. Cam barely managed to tear his gaze away from Hunter long enough to look at his father. "That is quite enough." He repeated. "Training is over for today." And with that he turned away, leaving the rangers gaping at him without an explanation.

"But sensei-" Tori tried from Cam's side, her arm still firmly in place on his shoulder.

"That is all." Sensei interrupted her without turning around.

That was when he noticed it. As he glanced back at the Crimson Ranger, Cam noticed something incredibly odd. Hunter was glowing. Just glowing. It seemed perfectly natural, accept that Cam had never noticed him glowing before. Cam shut his eyes and shook his head, and when he opened them again, the white light that had surrounded Hunter was gone.

None of the rangers had spoken, waiting to make sure that sensei was out of earshot.

"What happened?" Shane asked, glancing back and forth between Hunter and Cam. The voices around him no longer sounded muffled and his vision was fine. Hunter wasn't glowing, so he took that as a good sign.

"Ask him." Hunter said, nodding towards Cam.

Cam realized suddenly that the burning fire in his stomach hadn't subsided, had only been interrupted for a moment, and he was once again struck with the urge to punch Hunter as hard as he possibly could. From the way Hunter was looking at him, it appeared the feeling was mutual.

"Okay," Tori said as calming as she could. "Let's just take a minute and cool off."

"I'm fine." He said it at the same time Hunter did, and he almost winced. Tori glanced warily between them.

"Come on, bro." Blake was saying to Hunter. "Let's just go man." Blake attempted to turn his brother away, but Hunter didn't move.

It took every ounce of restraint Cam had not to tear into Hunter right there. He felt like a bull seeing red. Finally, Hunter let his brother drag him away, and Cam felt the rage subsiding. With the rage gone, Cam felt a sudden emptiness he couldn't explain.

It was a very long moment before any of the winds spoke. Finally, Tori gave Cam a practiced look.

"What was that about?" She asked quietly. Cam shook his head. He had just experienced two of the most powerful emotions he had ever felt, and he was feeling the strain already.

"I honestly don't know. What happened?" He still wasn't sure what the others had seen.

"We were all practicing dude, and them BAM!" Dustin began, making a large explosion with his hands.

"There was this huge white light coming from over here." Tori continued.

"And then it was gone, and you and Hunter were like, 20 feet back from where you had been, and both on the ground." Shane finished.

"That's when he came running. What happened to you?" Tori probed for his side of the story.

"The same thing I suppose. Only, it seemed to last longer than that." He left out the part about how it made him feel and the disturbing image of the eyes, storing those thoughts away in his mind for later. "Did…" He wasn't sure how to ask this without it sounding strange. "Did Hunter look any… different to you?" He asked them.

Dustin and Shane exchanged looks, then shook their heads no. Tori watched them, and when Cam looked to her she shrugged. "He looked kinda like you did; dazed, tired, and mad." She elaborated. Cam nodded, feeling thoroughly freaked out. "Why?"

He hadn't expected that, to be honest. The winds usually didn't question him. "No reason. I was just wondering." He shrugged it off easy enough. "I'm going back to ops."

"You look wiped out dude!" Dustin remarked, and Cam rolled his eyes.

"I'm fine." He assured them. Dustin and Shane shrugged and turned to head for Tori's van, but Tori lingered, eyeing him oddly.

"You sure?" She wanted to know.

"Positive." Leave it to Tori to be the caring motherly figure.

"Alright." She gave him a once over, letting him know that she didn't think so. "You should try and rest. We'll probably go grab some burgers. You want anything? French fries, maybe a shake?" She offered generously. At least she wasn't going to drag him out with them like usual.

"No, but thanks anyway." He didn't feel much like fast food. He had healthy food in the kitchen if he needed it.

"Okay, but I mean it Cam. Take a nap!" She pointed a commanding finger at him as she backed away to follow the other winds. He raised an eyebrow at her, and she turned around to catch up with the others. He watched her leave, knowing she would probably bring him a strawberry shake later anyways.

Cam sighed deeply, and once he felt totally alone, he turned and trudged back towards Ninja Ops.

There were a lot of things he couldn't stand. He hated it when his father patronized him. He hated it when people didn't agree with him. He hated bugs, but that was beside the point.

What he really hated right now was a certain crimson ranger who made his blood boil. He would have never given the crimson ranger powers to anyone like Hunter, if he could have chosen. Anyone would have been a better candidate for a ranger, let alone a friend. And that was the last thing Cam intended on becoming; Hunter's friend.

No, he was sure of it. There was nothing he hated more than Hunter Bradley.

* * *

"Why do you hate me?" The voice startled him. Cam turned in his chair to see Hunter leaning nonchalantly against the entrance frame, as though he had asked for a drink instead of the confrontational question he had just posed.

"I don't hate you." Cam retorted without thinking. Then, in an effort to avoid the argument that was sure to ensue, he added, "much."

Hunter raised his eyebrows. "Ditto." He answered after a moment's silence. "So what is your problem then?"

"My problem? My problem is rangers who interrupt my work with stupid questions." Cam turned back to his computer quickly, but he could feel the odd look Hunter was giving his back.

"So," Hunter suggested conversationally, "That would mean I actually am your problem."

"At the moment? Yeah, guess it does." He typed impatiently looking for something that could distract him. Maybe if Hunter caught on he was ignoring him, he'd leave.

No such luck, Cam thought as Hunter stepped into the room. "You know, I can see why your dad didn't want you to be a ranger." Hunter's voice held a certain amount of nonchalance to it, but the words made Cam turn around again.

"How is that any of your business?" He demanded, standing. Hunter shot him an even look.

"It's because you're a spoiled, temperamental, selfish brat, who never learned social skills in preschool." Hunter told him matter-of-factly, as though Cam wouldn't be entitled to hit him for it. "Not for some promise he made your mom. It's because you don't trust anyone, and you don't let anyone trust you."

"Get out." Cam told him carefully. He wasn't going to fight about this with Hunter Bradley. Hunter Bradley, the boy who had listened to Lothor about his father being a murdering villain. Hunter Bradley, the arrogant, pig headed, stubborn, orphan who thought he was entitled to something great because of it. "Or I'll throw you out myself."

Hunter starred him down, and Cam returned his stare equally. He felt it again; that same bubbling rage that made him want to lash out at the Crimson Ranger. He started to see red and was about to charge, when Hunter turned away. As quickly as it had come, the rage had subsided, leaving that same emptiness inside him as before.

Cam watched him until he reached the steps, and then resumed his seat at his desk.

"I'm not the one who broke you, you know. I'm not the one you have to be afraid of." Hunter's voice resounded quietly through Ninja Ops, and Cam had the strangest sensation of it being more in his head than in his surroundings.

When he finally turned back to look at the entrance, Hunter was gone.


	2. Ghosts of the Past

_They were almond shaped at first. Then they were round. First blue, then brown. The pupils were large, and then they dilated into tiny circles. They glinted with laughter one moment, then cried out in sadness the next. He didn't know what to make of them. They were constantly changing, as though they were not one pair of eyes, but two. Two pairs of eyes, two completely different people, changing and shifting into each other and back. The eyes closed and he could almost see the two faces, overlapping, becoming one, working together, half of each person. _

_The same pair of eyes as before. _

"_Cameron…" He heard his name whispered in a familiar voice, and then a piercing scream._

"_Hunter!" _

_The eyes shot open and he was surrounded, falling like before through fire and water and-_

The alarm buzzed beside him as Cam's eyes shot open. He glanced over at the clock, then turned his head back to the ceiling, trying to calm his breathing. He lay there, trying to make sense of the moment, the alarm still buzzing, making his head ring.

He reached over and turned off the alarm for the hundredth time, but it had never been going before.

_A dream…_ the thought washed over him. _A dream!_

Cam shot up and looked around. He had dreamed! For the very first time, he had actually dreamed. Or at least, remembered the dream. It was the strangest feeling he'd ever had. He tried to hold onto the images in his mind, but the more awake he became the more they faded away, like spider webs being tugged out from the branches of trees and floating away on the wind.

He sat there for who knows how long, trying to make sense of this new idea in his mind. What had it been? Who had he seen in that strange… well, he didn't really know if it was strange or not, never having had a dream before, but didn't everyone think their dreams were strange?

Cam finally decided he needed to move, and as he rolled out of bed he realized that he was soaked in sweat. He'd heard of cold sweats before, but he didn't much like the feel of them. He headed straight for the shower to wash up.

One thing he knew for sure; those eyes were the same ones he had seen when he had trained with Hunter the day before, when they had done _something _wrong. It made him wonder how the two events were connected. And why had he heard Hunter's name in his dream? Who had been calling out to him?

Frankly, he found the whole experience unnerving. More than Cam was willing to admit.

By the time he finished getting ready for the day and headed out into the main room of Ninja Ops, all of the Winds were already there, talking to his father. They all turned at his entrance, and they eyed him warily.

Cam shifted uncomfortably under their scrutinizing gazes. "What?"

"Cam," Tori stood and walked towards him. "Are you feeling alright?" She wondered.

"I'm fine. Why?" He glanced at each ranger individually, waiting for an answer.

It was Dustin who spoke. "Dude, you look _terrible_." He opined in typical Dustin fashion. Cam raised a self conscious hand to the back of his neck.

"I just… didn't sleep well. So?" Before anyone could respond, voices echoed down the stairway from up above, and the Navy and Crimson rangers appeared a moment later.

At least this took away most of the focus from Cam, as all eyes in the room fixed on Hunter. Cam hoped he didn't look that bad. Hunter looked sickly, and Blake was watching him carefully, guiding him with a hand on his elbow. What worried him was that Hunter wasn't resisting. Tori glanced in-between Cam and Hunter and she looked like she was about to say something, but Sensei beat her to it.

"Now that you are all here, I will explain the training I have in mind for today." He began. He hopped over near Cam's computer so that he was somewhat level with them.

"But Sensei," Tori hesitated, looking around. Sensei glanced at her.

"Yes Tori?" He asked. Tori glanced once more at Cam, as thought trying to judge what he would do when she spoke.

"What about what happened yesterday?" She wrung her hands as she looked around, as though she was the only one concerned. "What happened with Hunter and Cam? I mean, no offence guys, but you don't look so good. What if what happened to them drained their powers somehow, or made them sick? What exactly did happen?" Tori wondered. Cam had been thinking the same things all morning, and from the looks of it so had Hunter, but neither of them were about to voice their thoughts.

Sensei glanced between the two of them with a practiced look of minimal interest. "I do not think there is much to be worried about. Cameron, are you feeling quite alright?" Sensei asked him.

"Yes, I'm fine." He wasn't really. But he wasn't going to cause trouble over it. If his father was going to let him handle it, then he was going to handle it himself.

"Hunter, are you feeling well?" Sensei turned his gaze to Hunter. Hunter glanced around the room, and his gaze lingered when he met Cam's eyes. They stared at each other for a moment, both knowing something they weren't going to say, before he answered.

"Yeah, I'm good." Hunter's eyes were still fixed on Cam's as he spoke.

"Then if you are both feeling perfectly well, there is nothing to worry about." Cam glanced towards his father, and the guinea pig gave him a look that clearly said _I trust you_. "Now if you will turn your attention to the screen, I have an interesting activity for you today…"

As sensei explained the scavenger hunt he was about to send them on, Cam couldn't help but glance over at the Crimson ranger. He was standing with his arms crossed looking at sensei, but the moment Cam set eyes on him he seemed to feel it and glanced up. Cam looked away, back towards his father, but he could feel Hunter's eyes on him, studying, judging, and just blatantly staring.

Cam didn't quite know what to think about any of this, but he decided it would be best to put it out of his mind until the task at hand was done.

* * *

"This is a glorified scavenger hunt!" Shane complained as they collected another piece of the scroll. Sensei had sent them out to retrieve pieces of a scroll he had hidden. They were in obnoxious places, like up in trees, or under water, or in a mole hole. The idea was to work together and use their powers to get the entire scroll back in once piece. "This doesn't teach us anything!"

"It teaches us that you're a whiner!" Tori said as she snatched the piece of the scroll he had just retrieved from him. Shane glared at her playfully and she smiled over her shoulder at him.

Tori read whatever was on it, and showed it to Blake. She shot a weary eye at Hunter before she spoke. "You want to get this one, Blake?"

"Where is it?" Hunter demanded. He seemed insulted, and Cam didn't blame him. The rest of the rangers had been acting strangely with both of them. Just because they looked sick didn't mean they weren't still completely competent.

"It's no big deal. Dustin and I can handle it." Blake told him. Hunter narrowed his eyes.

"I can do it. Tell me where it is." His voice was dangerously low, and Cam thought he could probably be more hostile if he had more energy.

Blake heard the undertone, but he didn't defer. "I think you should sit this one out, bro. I can handle it." Blake assured. There was no challenge in his voice, but Hunter didn't care.

"Stop treating me like a kid." Hunter walked over and snatched the scroll right out of Tori's hand. "I'll do it. Just back the hell off." Hunter started off towards the stream.

The other rangers stared after him. Cam waited for someone to follow. Surely the scroll fragment wasn't in a place Hunter could retrieve it alone. However it didn't look like anyone dared to go after the moody Crimson ranger.

As it turned out, they didn't have to. Before Cam could even say anything, Hunter stopped walking, stumbled to the left, and passed out.

All of the rangers except Cam rushed towards the collapsed ranger. Cam watched as a panicked Blake tried to wake Hunter up, and that was when he realized he wasn't breathing. Suddenly lightheaded, Cam struggled to take a breath and closed his eyes. One breath taken, he continued to struggle to breathe when he heard his name called.

"Cam!" It was Tori's voice. Reluctantly, Cam opened his eyes. "Hunter needs help!" She shouted at him.

Cam nodded, regretted it, and began to walk towards the group. He reached Hunter's side in a moment, pushed Shane out of the way and checked Hunter's pulse.

"He's fine. Calm down." Cam told the group at large. "He's just unconscious."

"Why?" Blake wanted to know. He was cradling his elder brother's head in his lap.

"I don't know. Maybe he…" Cam couldn't find the word and he squinted to clear his vision.

"…Overexerted himself?" Tori finished for him, and Cam nodded.

"Yeah, that. He just… uh…" Cam shook his head again, trying to clear it.

"Needs rest?" Tori said again. Cam nodded, and brought a hand up to rub his eyes. "Cam, are _you_ feeling alright?"

"Dude, maybe we'd better get them both back to ops while he's still conscious." Shane suggested. "We don't need two unconscious rangers on our hands."

"I'm alright. Just… dizzy. Hunter will be fine. If you hadn't pissed him off in the first place, this probably wouldn't have happened." Cam told Blake, who glared back at him.

"This isn't my fault!" Blake defended. Tori was quick to jump in, reaching over to place a hand on Blake's shoulder.

"It's no ones fault. Let's just get him back to ops." She reached for Cam instead of Hunter, and helped him stand. He was close to telling her he didn't need it, but he didn't want to end up like Hunter, so he allowed it.

Shane and Blake got an unconscious Hunter to his feet and began to drag him back towards ops.

"Sensei never should have let him train like this. He knew this would happen!" Blake insisted.

"Chill, dude." Shane commanded, and for some reason that silenced Blake. They walked back in silence, but Cam was becoming more and more disturbed by the lightheaded feeling he had that wouldn't go away.

He stumbled more than once, and he was beginning to get annoyed by Tori's attention. Each time he faltered her hand appeared on his elbow to steady him, and she didn't let go until he shrugged her off. She didn't say anything, but watched him like a hawk. His breathing got easier, and he no longer had to remind himself to take a breath.

When they got back to ops, Sensei was waiting for them. "I suspect that you have not yet finished the task at hand. I did not expect you back until sundown." He told them. Cam thought that his father wasn't telling the truth, or he wouldn't have been waiting for them. He must have been monitoring them.

"Hunter fainted. We figured that was a pretty good reason for coming back early." Blake told him. They laid Hunter down on the table, and Blake inspected him again.

"I saw. However you did not complete the assignment." Sensei said sternly.

"But Sensei-" Dustin began, but Sensei cut him off.

"The assignment was to retrieve every piece of the scroll, as a team, before sundown. It is before sundown, but you have not completed the mission." Sensei hopped onto the table next to Hunter.

"What were we supposed to do?" Shane wanted to know. "Drag him along with us while we finished and risk hurting him?" Shane looked at Sensei incredulously.

"That is precisely what I expected you to do. If a member of the team is down, it is the rest of the team who must complete the mission without them. In this case, it would have been wiser to complete the mission, since you knew that Hunter would recover." It was obvious at the end of Sensei's words how much the other rangers disagreed. It was only a training task, so they didn't have to treat it like a battle.

Cam refrained from pointing out to the disgruntled rangers that the point of training was to react how they would in a real situation. He was tired, they were aggravated, and his father was right. As far as Cam was concerned, the day was complete, and it was time to go home. No one said anything to Sensei, but it was obvious how they felt by the looks on their faces.

Whether Sensei was ignoring that, or just didn't care he couldn't tell. "Cam, you will take Hunter to the medical station, and check him over. The rest of you will run 5 miles before you leave." He also ignored the groans the rangers let out. "Tomorrow we will try this task again. Be prepared for a long day." And that was it. No arguments, no wise advice. Sensei just retreated to his habitat cart, and it hovered off down the hallway.

"This is so whack!" Dustin complained.

"Tell me about it. We weren't going to just leave him!" Tori agreed.

"Man, I don't get it. Do the wrong thing, get punished. Try to do the right thing, get punished anyway." Blake said, folding his arms and glancing away from his brother for the first time.

"He's right." Cam said begrudgingly, walking to the table.

"How's that, exactly?" Shane wondered. He didn't sound upset, only curious, but Cam could feel the glare Blake shot his way.

"These exercises are supposed to prepare us for battle right? Hone our skills. Make us better rangers." He turned back to them, and they all shot him looks of minimal understanding.

"So? What's your point?" Blake snapped. Tori nudged him, but he didn't move.

Cam sighed. "My point is that they don't do us any good unless we react to them the same way we would in real life. What if there had been no ops to come back to?" He didn't bother trying to keep the irritation out of his voice, even if it wasn't necessarily at them.

"We would have kept going." Shane answered. "But it's still just training. We're always going to react a little differently, especially if someone's hurt. Why risk them getting injured farther when we could spar them, so they'd be ready for the real stuff?" Shane argued.

"Maybe we're not very good rangers then, if we couldn't figure that out when we had someone to argue it with. Don't you have to get running?" Cam snapped, reaching down to hoist Hunter onto his shoulders.

"Here, I'll do it." Blake offered.

"I can handle it. I believe babying _him _got us into this situation. I'd hate to think what would happen if you pissed me off." Cam muttered dryly.

Blake sighed and held his hands up in surrender. "Whatever man. Just take care of him." Blake's request sounded more like a warning. The rangers filled out the entrance to go for their run, and Cam headed down the hallway to the medical room.

It bothered him that he hadn't heard his father's habitat cart returning, and only noticed it when his father called out to him.

"Cam?" His father called gently. Cam turned, a little annoyed with his fathers timing. He had a 170 pound man on his back, if he didn't notice.

"Yes, dad?" Cam asked as calmly as possible.

"Perhaps you should drink some herbal tea before bed tonight. It might help you sleep." His father suggested. Then he turned again. Cam stared after the retreating habitat cart, wondering what his father knew that he wasn't saying. He hadn't bothered to mention that his father hadn't told him to take the run. Maybe just this once he was glad he got a little special treatment.

He breathed a sigh to the empty room. "Thanks dad."

* * *

Cam practically threw Hunter down on the cot in the Medical Lab. He could blame it on his own exhausted muscles, instead of his general contempt for the Crimson ranger. He checked Hunter over halfheartedly, and then went to get a wet cloth for his head. He'd have to stay with him until he woke up, but there wasn't much else he could do other than monitor him.

Cam couldn't help but wonder about his simultaneous condition. He didn't feel well, but he wasn't quite sure how to explain it. He felt drained, like he hadn't slept in days. He was just exhausted. He considered his dream again, glancing back at the unconscious figure on the table. He had tried to put it out of his mind that morning, but he quickly found out that when you're trying not to think about something, it can quickly become the only thing you can think about. He sighed, reaching up to rub his tired eyes before glancing back at the unconscious blonde.

It hadn't been the same voice that called Hunters name as the one that had called his. Both of the voices sounded familiar, distinctive, but it was impossible to be sure. Every time he tried to picture the dream, the eyes, the flashes, it changed again. He couldn't explain it, and that bothered him. There weren't many things he didn't understand.

Lying on the table next to him was another thing he didn't understand. Cam glared a Hunter, if only for the reason that it made him feel a little better.

"I could probably wake you up you know." He told the unconscious body. "Go get some of those little sour sticks. But I'm not going to."

Cam had grabbed a towel out of the cupboard. He ran it underneath warm water, smirking smugly.

"You wanna know why I'm not going to?" He questioned the silence. "Cause you're an ass!" He told the body as he wrung the towel out.

He froze when he heard the muffled snort of laughter. "I heard that." Hunter's groggy voice informed him.

Cam's eyes widened, but he kept a decidedly neutral look on his face as he turned back to Hunter. "You'd better not of been faking to get out a running." Cam warned him. He didn't think he had been, but he wouldn't put anything past Hunter.

"I wish." Hunter was lying on the bed in the same position Cam had thrown him down in. Apparently, he had the energy to talk, but not to move.

"Here." Cam tossed the wet towel at Hunter. Hunter didn't bother trying to catch it, and it ended up on his shoulder.

Hunter grumbled something Cam couldn't understand as he reached for the towel, and he held it to his face. His hand feel, and he left the warm rag covering his face.

Cam rolled his eyes. "Don't be so dramatic. You're fine; now get out of my medical bay." Cam turned back to the sink to find something to dry his own hands with.

Hunter laughed in a way that told Cam he wasn't really amused. "No pity for anyone, huh? Not even for something _you_ did to them." Hunter commented. Cam grabbed onto the sides of the sink.

"_I _didn't do anything." He told the facet.

"Right. I totally drained both our powers, all by myself." Hunter retorted. Cam heard him moving behind him, but their proximity didn't change.

"At least you're admitting it." Cam ground out. "Congratulations. You're not only ruining your own life now, your messing up other peoples."

"Would you come down off of your high horse for ten seconds?" Hunter demanded. "You're not perfect, and whatever happened between us was both our faults." He heard Hunter stand and toss the wet cloth on the floor.

Cam glanced down, seeing his knuckles turning white as he gripped the sink. "I don't have to listen to you." He told Hunter, and then he headed for the door without looking back.

"The dream bothered you that much too, huh?" Hunter asked, his voice soft. Cam stopped in his tracks, unsure what to do.

Very slowly, he turned back to glance at the blonde ranger. "What dream?"

Their eyes locked, and Cam regretted it the second it happened. He glanced down at the floor, barely able to focus.

"I don't know what we did," Hunter told him. "But obviously we can't ignore it. I for one want to know what's wrong with me."

Cam glared back up at him. "I'll make you a list." Hunter returned his glare evenly, and neither of them said anything for a long moment.

There it was again. That same burning feeling from before, only now it was beginning to freak Cam out. He couldn't control his own senses as the light around him shifted, couldn't hang on to his center of gravity as he focused in on Hunters round brown eyes. He felt himself falling before he saw the look of anger change to worry in Hunters eyes, and then he was staring up at the ceiling, not knowing what hit him.

"Cam?" He heard the voice, but he didn't register it. It was only when he saw the blurry figure hovering above him that he stopped spinning. "Cam. Get up." The voice demanded, but Cam couldn't obey. His body felt like lead, weighed down so heavily that he didn't think he could move.

Hunters hand reached out and smacked him across the face. That drew him back to reality quicker than he would have liked. He shook his head vigorously, attempting to clear it. He felt Hunters hands on his shoulders, helping his sit up, and Cam struggled against him.

"Don't touch me! Just-" Cam shoved Hunter away. "Just back the hell off!" He heard himself echo Hunters words from earlier, but it was the only phrase he could call to mind.

"Cam, let me help you." Hunter requested, but Cam managed to somehow stand on his own, even if he had to hold onto the door frame to do it.

"I don't want your help." Cam snapped back childishly. "I am doing just fine on my own!"

Hunter reached for Cam's arm again despite his words, and Cam reached out and shoved him. Hard.

So hard in fact that Hunter stumbled back against the storage cabinets against the wall. Hunters face contorted as he straightened up, and he came towards Cam again.

"Don't push me!" He shouted as he slammed Cam out the door and into the wall in the hallway.

"This is ridiculous!" Cam shouted back, and that made Hunter pause. "Don't try and help me!"

Cam brushed himself off, and shot another glare at Hunter. Hunter glared back at him like before, but this time it had no effect on the upset Asian before him.

"I don't need your help." Cam said very quietly. "And I don't need you."


	3. First Breath After

_AN: Okay, so. This has been a long time in the making, and honestly, I only got to finishing it because I got so mad about a recent conversation I had. For some reason, I can only work on this fic when I'm furious. Go figure. Anyway, this fic is a continuous work in progress. I have a list of things that absolutly have to happen, and a list of things I want to happen, and making them match is hard. So, this is the rough draft of this story, just so we're clear. Maybe once I finish it I'll go back and revise again, who knows. In the mean time, enjoy, and leave me many happy reviews! Please and Thank You!_

Cam tried harder than ever to fall asleep that night. He tossed and turned. He brewed some of his fathers disgusting herbal tea, and actually drank it. He ran 5 miles to tire himself out. It seemed that no matter what he did sleep continued to elude him.

But oh, how he wanted to have that dream again! As mystifying and strange as it had been, Cam wanted to know more. He wanted to _dream_.

He really wanted to know what it meant, because not knowing was driving him up the wall.

In a last desperate effort, Cam entered his father's meditation room. He hadn't been in there in a while, but he needed to calm his mind down. The more he wanted sleep, the farther away it got, and the worse he felt.

Cam sat down on one of the cushions. His eyes were heavy, and his legs felt like lead. He couldn't shake the feeling the look on Hunter's face had given him earlier that day. Cam sighed, knowing he shouldn't have said what he did, but unable to take it back now.

He closed his eyes, and began to focus on the exercises he had learned as a child.

It didn't work. At all, actually. He was a little bit shocked. It made him feel tired, so much so that he didn't want to move, but he knew he wasn't going to be able to fall asleep.

He didn't even feel the presence behind him until he spoke.

"Somehow, I just knew you'd be up." Hunter spoke dryly. Cam let out a frustrated sigh.

"Go. Away." Cam ordered immediately. That wasn't what he wanted to say, but when Hunter came in and started off the way he did, Cam didn't feel all that inclined to apologize.

"I would, but I can't. Cam." Hunter came and sat next to him. "We have to figure out what's going on here. Now, I don't like you and you don't like me. That much is clear. But I'm not going to make it another day like this. Something happened out there, but I can't figure it out on my own."

Hunter paused, and Cam looked over at him questioningly.

"I need your help." Hunter admitted. Cam watched him, and though he didn't want to admit it he knew Hunter was right. They sat in silence for several moments, both contemplating the meditative statue before them without really seeing it.

Finally, Cam sighed. "I can try running some tests, if you have time."

Hunter let out a relieved noise. "I'm not going anywhere." Hunter sounded a bit amused as he stood. He offered his hand to Cam, and reluctantly Cam took it.

It hit him like a truck. A bolt of energy shot through him with such intensity that his eyes clouded over and his breath caught in his throat. It didn't hurt, exactly. In fact, he actually felt a little better when it started to subside. But the rush was too much. He yanked his hand away from Hunter's, and the feeling was gone.

Hunter looked about as shocked as he felt. "What the hell was that?"

"I have no idea." Cam admitted. He tried to shake off the residual warmth that settled over him like a blanket.

"But you felt it too, right?" Hunter asked quickly. He looked more relaxed than when Cam had last looked at him. "Like a jolt of energy?"

"Yeah." Cam nodded and frowned. "It happened when I took your hand."

They stared at each other in confusion. Then, tentatively, Hunter held out his hand again. Cam took a deep breath, preparing himself for the shock again.

He reached out and took Hunter's hand.

…Nothing happened. Cam let out a breath as he traded glances with Hunter.

"Yeah, I didn't feel anything either." Cam answered quietly.

Hunter frowned. "I didn't say anything."

Cam rolled his eyes. "Yes, you did." Cam insisted. "You said 'Nothing'. I heard you."

Hunter shook his head. "No, I didn't." He thought a second and then added, "At least, not out loud."

_That's weird_, Cam thought.

"Really weird." Hunter spoke only a second later.

"I didn't say that out loud." Cam told him.

They glanced at their clasped hands, and then back at each other. They both dropped their hands.

Cam stood unceremoniously, almost forgetting how tired he was. He almost forgot, until the head rush hit him and he stumbled.

Hunter caught him. He was practically holding him up, and for reasons he couldn't explain that made him feel better.

"Whoa. Okay there?" Hunter mumbled as he helped Cam stand.

Cam pushed his glasses up on his nose as he pushed off of Hunter. "Come on, let's go run some tests."

* * *

Absolutely nothing. Cam had run every test he could think of. He'd scanned both his and Hunter's DNA, checked their blood and heart rates, and even ran a brain scan on Hunter for any signs on weird neurologically activity. Other than a slightly high level of activity in the visual area everything was normal. 

Interestingly enough, that was the part of the brain that controlled dreams. Cam was worried what his own scan might reveal.

He heard Hunter yawn. "Tired?"

"A little." Hunter muttered behind him. "Find anything?"

"Maybe." Cam paused, going over the scan again. "You mentioned a dream you had earlier?"

Hunter didn't answer. Cam turned back to him questioningly.

"Well?"

"You can't hear my thought?" Hunter asked. Cam couldn't decide if he was serious or not. He was probably too tired.

"Of course not." Cam snapped.

Hunter's grin faded. "I was thinking that I know you had it too."

Cam frowned. He tried not to look at him. "How do you figure?"

"Cause you wouldn't have reacted like that earlier if you hadn't." Hunter observed.

Cam tried to decide whether to say anything or not. Hunter made up his mind for him by continuing.

"It was so weird, wasn't it? I mean, whose eyes were those?" Hunter wondered. Cam glanced over his should at him, but he couldn't see him. Hunter had lain down on the medical bed. "And those voices. I could swear I recognized one of them. But it's all so fuzzy now." Hunter yawned again.

Cam couldn't help the yawn that rose to his own lips. Hunter was silent, and Cam didn't feel inclined to say anything. He really didn't want to talk about it. Mostly because he didn't understand it, and Cam hated trying to talk about things he didn't understand. Hunter was different it seemed. He liked to talk things through, like it helped him think about it. Cam didn't understand how that worked.

"I can't find anything. There is this one elevated reading, but it doesn't make sense." Cam muttered at last. He was answered with silence. He turned around to see Hunter with his eyes closed.

Cam sighed. Of course, he would do that. He was about to wake Hunter up when something stopped him.

He just looked so peaceful when he was asleep. Yeah, Cam definitely liked sleeping Hunter better than awake Hunter. Cam decided it was best just to let Hunter sleep. Hell, at least one of them should.

Cam stifled another yawn. He grabbed a blanket out of the cabinet and laid it across Hunter. He could be nice, just this once.

Cam leaned back against the cabinets and closed his eyes. Just to rest them, he told himself. Just a quick rest before he headed for bed…

* * *

_Those eyes just wouldn't leave him alone. They were everywhere. Changing. Always shifting from one to the next. . Two pairs of eyes, two completely different people, changing and shifting into each other and back. Two faces overlapping, and he knew he recognized them. _

_Deafening noise in his ears, and then he was falling away from them. Falling so fast and yet he couldn't get anywhere. And then the flash of light and he rush of energy flowing through him. _

"_Cameron." The first voice whispered. He knew that voice. He__** knew**__ that voice. _

"_Hunter!" The second voice screamed so loudly his ear drums burned and suddenly he wasn't falling anymore, he was floating. _

_There was something far away, something he couldn't make out. People. People talking and children playing. He tried to get closer to see them, but the more he walked the farther away he got. He started running, and the people were gone. _

"_Cameron." The voice whispered again. "Cameron. Cameron…" _

"Cameron." The voice changed dramatically, and he felt a hand on his shoulder. Cam opened his eyes and jumped a bit. "You okay?"

Cam looked up to see Hunter staring down at him. He smiled, and then he wasn't sure why.

Hunter grinned back, looking a bit unsure. "You awake?"

Cam nodded. "Yeah, I'm here. Where am I?" Cam wondered, trying to push himself into a sitting position.

"Medical bay. We must have fallen asleep last night when we were running those tests." Hunter told him.

"What time is it?" Cam couldn't help but think how bad it would look for Hunter and Cam to arrive late together to training.

"About 8. Blake just called, wondered where I was." Hunter supplied, and Cam looked at him.

"And you told him…?" Cam wondered. Hunter smirked.

"That I was at Ninja Ops already." Hunter sounded amused. "I didn't mention you, if that's what you mean."

"Why would I care?" Cam asked grouchily as hunter stood. He held out his hand, and Cam almost took it.

But when he thought about it, that didn't seem like the best way to start off the morning.

"No thanks." He told Hunter as he stood. Hunter crossed his arms like his feelings were hurt.

"We should get going. Want to work on this again later?" Hunter wondered.

"Work on what? We were at a dead end, last I checked." Cam told him as they headed for the exit of the room.

"Hey, if you don't want to know what's going on, fine." Hunter told him moodily.

Cam rolled his eyes. "I think we'll be just fine not knowing if we just _stay away_ from each other."

Hunter looked at him with a slight glare. "Fine by me." He agreed, and they went their separate ways for the days training.

What bothered Cam was how empty he felt as soon as Hunter left his side.

* * *

It had been three days since he had talked to Hunter. Three long, hard, absolutely miserable days. 

Cam couldn't take it any more. He wasn't sleeping, could barely eat. He had no idea what was wrong with him, but he could barely think straight.

It was obvious the other rangers had noticed some kind of change in both of them. They were both really tired and a lot more irritable than normal. Which was quite a statement for them. Their moves had become sloppy, and if Cam had to guess he would say that Hunter had slept even less than he had.

He didn't understand it. What was going on with them? Why couldn't Cam function when he was away from Hunter? Why did he feel so much better every time Hunter looked at him? Why did he feel so much more relaxed when he was sparring with Hunter?

None of it made any sense, but he knew one thing: he had to be close to Hunter.

Which was how Cam found himself outside the Thunder brothers apartment at 6 o'clock that night. The sun was setting, and Cam debated on whether or not he should actually ring the bell. He knew he should, but he had no idea what to say when he did.

Strangely enough, he didn't have to. Hunter opened the door before he could make up his mind, and Cam wondered how he'd known he was there.

Hunter looked absolutely horrible. He was wearing some loose jeans with an open flannel shirt. There were bags under his eyes and he was leaning heavily on the door. Cam didn't know how he was dressed so lightly. He was wearing two shirts and a sweater. He just couldn't seem to get warm.

"Hi." Cam said quietly. Hunter scoffed.

"Hi." He echoed quietly. "How are you?"

"Not as bad as you." Cam observed. "You look horrible."

"I feel horrible." Hunter countered. "But you knew that, didn't you?"

Cam didn't answer. He shoved his hands in his pockets uncomfortably.

"Hey, you want some coffee?" Hunter offered. Cam nodded at the invitation, and Hunter pushed himself off of the door and headed back into the apartment.

Cam followed him and closed the door behind him. "Nice place." He commented. He'd never been inside the apartment before, though he had always known where it was.

"Thanks." Hunter grumbled as he headed towards the small kitchen. Cam followed him. "Take off your shoes." Hunter ordered. Not feeling up to arguing, Cam obeyed.

Cam sat at the kitchen table and slumped down in his seat. He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on his own breathing. This was the last place he wanted to fall asleep, but he was feeling calmer every second.

"Sugar?" Hunter's voice intruded.

"What?" Cam's eyes snapped open. Hunter was regarding him curiously.

"You want sugar in your coffee?" Hunter asked him more clearly, and Cam relaxed.

"No. Just black, thanks." Cam told him. Hunter looked at him kind of funny.

"You drink black coffee?" Hunter asked.

"Yes. Problem?" Cam shot back. Hunter shrugged.

"Nope. Here you go." Hunter handed him the coffee mug, and their fingers brushed.

The jolt of energy shot through him, and he was almost grateful. Still, it made him jump, and he dropped the cup of coffee all over the kitchen floor.

Hunter let fly a curse word, and Cam stood to help him clean it up.

"Sorry." Cam mumbled, reaching for the paper towels.

"Don't worry about it." Hunter muttered as he knelt down on the floor with a rag.

They moped up the mess pretty well, and then Hunter threw the soaked rag on the floor.

"Do that again." Hunter told him. Cam looked up.

"What?" Cam asked.

"I feel better when you touch me." Hunter mumbled with his eyes squeezed shut. "And yeah, I know how that sounds. Please no jokes."

Cam was actually kind of amused, and he would have said something had the situation not been so strange. Instead, he glanced warily at Hunter's outstretched hand. Hunter's eyes were still closed tightly, like he was afraid of what might happen.

Cam was kind of afraid himself. He had to admit though that Hunter was right. He did feel better every time that jolt of energy shot through him. It was like they were swapping energies when they touched, which didn't make any sense at all. All Cam knew was that it helped. Just being around Hunter helped, and that made absolutely no sense of any kind.

Because he hated Hunter. With a fiery passion. Hunter drove him crazy and they weren't friends and they argued about everything and-

"Cam. Please." Hunter begged quietly. Well that did it. Hunter begging was about as high as his weirdness scale went.

Cam reached out and took his hand. There was no jolt of energy this time, but just like before he felt the blanket of warmth settling around him. He looked up to find Hunter looking significantly more relaxed.

"Thank you." Hunter whispered. Cam nodded even though Hunter couldn't see him.

They were quiet for a moment, and at last Hunter opened his eyes. Their eyes locked as they sat there, and Cam was afraid that the anger that had been so fresh that first day would come back.

It didn't though. It was a different feeling this time, one that put him on edge all the same. He felt happy, and it was almost difficult to keep a smile from rising to his lips.

He was seriously getting freaked out here.

Hunter seemed to have the same feeling, because he glanced away and slowly pulled his hand away from Cam's. Cam sighed involuntarily at the loss of contact, and Hunter's mouth turned up.

"I'll get you another cup." Hunter offered as he stood. He looked better, Cam noticed. More alert, maybe. Hard to say. Cam stood too, and he didn't drop his cup this time when Hunter handed it to him.

"This is weird." Cam stated as Hunter fixed his own coffee. Hunter stopped and turned to him.

"Tell me about it." He retorted easily. Cam glared.

"This isn't a joke, Hunter. Something is really wrong here." Cam stated coolly.

Hunter frowned and crossed his arms, looking particularly thoughtful. Needless to say, that was an expression Cam rarely saw on the thunder's face. "Should we tell the others?"

Cam glanced at him suspiciously. This was a strange situation, and maybe it was best kept between them for now. Hunter caught his eye, and the shook their heads at the same time.

"No." They said in unison. Hunter grinned.

"Want to stick around a bit? Watch some TV?" He offered. He walked right past him and headed for the sofa.

Cam looked after him incredulously. "We have more important things to worry about, I think." He pointed out.

Hunter shrugged. "I thought we were at a dead end." Hunter reminded easily. Cam pursed his lips. "So let's relax a bit."

Cam took a sip of his coffee and set it down on the table. "I'd rather not." He said as he headed to get his shoes. He sat down to put them on. "I'm going to head back to Ops. I'll look up our… symptoms and see what I can find."

Cam got his shoes on and was about to stand when something caught his eye. On a table right next to the door sat Hunter's keys, a candle, and a picture. It looked kind of old and faded, and the frame was beat up, but Cam paused as he saw it.

He stood and picked it up. There was a woman and a young boy in the photo.

"That's me and my mom." Hunter told him from the couch. "I was 4. Only picture I have of just me and her."

Cam studied the photo. "I know this place." He said at last. He looked up at Hunter, who was looking at him with a raised eyebrow. "Where was this taken?"

Hunter shrugged. "Just some park up in Angel Grove. I don't know where, exactly."

Cam shook his head, his heart beginning to race. "I know this place. I've seen it." He was sure he knew where that photo was taken, but he couldn't figure out how. He'd _seen_ that park before.

"It's just a park Cam." Hunter stood and came towards him. He took the picture out of Cam's hands. "You might have been there when you were a kid, or something. Why does it matter?"

Cam stared at the photo. Suddenly it snapped, and he knew where he'd seen that park before. "I need to go." He headed for the door, but Hunter caught his arm.

"What's wrong?" He asked quickly. "Where are you going?"

Cam looked back at him. "I need to find something. I'm going to my storage unit."

"Well, hang on, I'll come with you." Hunter offered.

Cam shook his head. "I can handle it."

Hunter grabbed up his keys and jingled them. "I don't doubt it, but I have the car."


	4. It's Natural To Be Afraid

_AN: It's not just that I have to be angry to write this, really. Part of it probably has to do with the fact that its summer, and I don't have a job. Another part of it is probably due to my good friend MsJimmy, for being there when I need to bounce ideas around. And lastly, to all my lovely reviewers. You guys make this worth doing!  
AN2: A lot happens in this chapter, and probably too fast. Initially this wasn't how I saw it going, but it's how I wrote it and I rather like the way it's turning out, so. There we are. _

They reached the storage compound a lot quicker in Hunter's truck than Cam would have made it walking. It gave him less time to think, which was both good and bad. He couldn't figure out why he had agreed to let Hunter come in the first place, or why he'd actually told him where he was going. It had just seemed like the right thing to do at the time.

But riding in the car with Hunter, Cam regretted it. It was an uncomfortable silence they shared, both of them either afraid to break it or to distracted by their own thoughts to notice. Cam didn't like it one bit.

The sun had almost completely set, and things took on a dark appearance around them. Cam tried not to feel tired.

As they reached his family storage unit he paused, realizing he didn't actually have the key.

"What?" Hunter seemed to sense his uncertainty.

Cam shook his head. "Nothing." Cam walked up the steps and waited for Hunter to follow him. "Open the door." He commanded.

Hunter stared at him.

"I don't have the key with me. It's my unit, who cares if I break into my own unit?" Cam asked. He waited in an impatient manner, while Hunter looked between him and the door.

"If you say so." Hunter reached out to touch the lock. A bolt of lighting shot from his fingers and encircled the lock, and it snapped open. "I would just like the point out, that technically, _I _was the one who broke into your storage unit." Hunter added as Cam pushed the door open.

Cam made sure Hunter didn't see his smirk. He flipped the switch to turn the lights on, and they flickered to life slowly.

"What exactly are we looking for?" Hunter wondered as they entered the dusty place. It was pilled with boxes, most of them his mother's things.

"A box of photo's." Cam answered as he started to pull the first box down. "Nothing's marked though. We'll just have to go through it box by box until we find the right one."

Hunter did that unbelieving stare very well.

"You wanted to come." Cam reminded. Hunter opened his mouth, then seemed to think better of it and closed it. Cam was actually kind of curious about what he was going to say.

So they started going through boxes. Some of it was clothing, some jewelry, and some were things of his fathers. He found a really old camera and equipment in one box. Cam was amazed at how far technology had come since he was born. Hunter made a couple of snide remarks about some of the boxes, but he seemed to take the hint when Cam didn't acknowledge any of them. This was hard for Cam. He hadn't been to this storage unit in ages, and looking through his mothers old things was not how he planned to spend the day.

"Something tells me we should have started at the back and worked our way forward." Hunter commented some time later. They were almost to the back of the unit. "Might have been faster."

"You can go, if you want." Cam told him. He wouldn't mind some alone time.

"I didn't say that. Besides, I don't think leaving you alone with all your moms old things is a very good idea." Hunter told him gently. There was no malice in his voice, no hint of mocking. He sounded sympathetic. "I don't think there's a quicker way to get depressed."

Cam looked over at him. Hunter hadn't stopped going through the box he was looking through. Cam studied the blonde ranger. He was already better at reading Cam's emotions than Cam himself, and they had only spent a few hours together. It was strange really. Hunter wasn't really as annoying as he appeared. He just had a funny way of showing he cared.

"If you want me to go, I will. I'm just saying…" Hunter trailed off as Cam realized he was looking at him. Cam looked away and shook his head.

"No." Cam answered, going back to his own box. "You're right. Stay."

Hunter didn't say anything, and they continued to look in silence. It was nearly twenty minutes before either of them spoke again, and when Hunter did the words made him wince.

"Hey, look! I think I found Cam's baby box!" Hunter said gleefully. Cam paled.

"What we're looking for isn't in there. Put it away." He ordered. Hunter didn't listen.

"Aw, look at the little footy pajamas!" Hunter teased, holding up some of Cam's baby clothes.

Cam smacked his hand against his forehead. "Hunter…" He warned.

"Relax Cam, we all have them." Hunter chuckled, and then stopped abruptly. "Well, okay, I don't. I was adopted when I was 2 so, I didn't actually have anything babyish. Still, you get the idea."

Cam rolled his eyes. "Funny, looks to me like you never grew up."

Hunter threw a look over his shoulder. "Funny." He commended, and then his sniggered. "Your mom saved your first baby tooth."

"Okay, that's it." Cam stood and started towards Hunter. "Give me that box."

Hunter didn't move, apparently feeling unthreatened by Cam's presence. "This is cute." He commented as he pulled out a small green blanket.

"Put it away!" Cam snatched the blanket from Hunter's hands and shoved it back in the box.

Hunter smiled gleefully. "Someone is awfully protective of their blanky." He observed with a chuckle.

Cam sighed. He reached up to rub his eyes. "I'm going to close this box, and you're not going to mention this again."

"Hey, wait. What's this?" Hunter asked as he reached down into the box. Cam opened his eyes to glare down at the crimson ranger, afraid he might find something like a baby's first book. Instead, he was holding a necklace.

"What is that?" Cam asked as he knelt down beside him.

"How should I know?" Hunter handed him the pendant. "It's your baby box."

Cam ran his fingers over the warm metal. It was a strange design on a long silver chain. It looked to him like there were four hands intertwined, but that didn't make any sense to him.

"Actually, I think I've seen that design somewhere." Hunter mumbled as he glanced at the charm in Cam's hands.

"I've never seen it before." Cam admitted.

"Weird." Hunter muttered. "But how much of your mother's jewelry did you play with, right?"

"She didn't have a whole lot of jewelry. Just things dad gave her or things I got her. She didn't wear any that often." Cam fingered the pendant once more before setting it back in the box. "Come on, we still have more boxes to search."

Hunter sighed dramatically. "Where are Lothor's monsters when you need them?"

Cam grinned. "You'd better knock on wood." He warned.

"What?" Hunter asked him as he stood and sealed the box.

"Knock on wood." Cam repeated. Hunter looked confused. "So you don't jinx yourself?"

Hunter gave him a funny look. "How would that help?"

Cam opened his mouth to answer, and then found he didn't actually know. So he shrugged instead. "It's just an expression."

"Yeah, a strange one." Hunter mumbled. Cam rolled his eyes.

As fate would have it, the box of photo's ended up being one of the last ones they looked through. Cam wondered how long they had been in the storage unit, as he was kind of hot. At least the sun wasn't cooking on the metal building anymore. He wasn't wearing his watch, thanks to a brief laps in judgment earlier that day when he hadn't been able to think straight.

He could now though, but he still didn't know exactly what he was looking for. He had an idea, but he didn't actually remember anything very clearly. So, since he had no idea what he was looking for, he could exactly tell Hunter what to look for. So Cam sat leaning against a bigger box going through the pictures, while Hunter made idle commentary as he glanced over his shoulder.

It was a weird day.

They talked a little. Civil-like, even. Hunter would ask questions about the pictures, and Cam would answer, and Hunter would make a joke. Cam even laughed a couple of times.

Yeah, it was a really weird day.

Cam put another photo down, and sat up straight when he saw the one underneath it. "Hunter, look."

Hunter glanced over his shoulder. "Whoa." Hunter's voice was quiet at he reached for the photo.

It was the same park the picture of Hunter and his mother had been taken in. Only in this one, there was a 4 year old _Cam_ with _his_ mother.

"That's freaky." Hunter opined. "That what we were looking for?"

"I think so." Cam took the picture back from Hunter's hand. "I remember. We were there to see my grandmother. She died that year. Mom was trying to cheer me up."

"Brave of her." Hunter told him. "Okay, so we've both been to the same park at some point in time. Remind me; what significance does this have?"

"I don't know." Cam confessed. He put his head down in his hands. "I don't know. I thought…" Cam sighed, tossing the picture back in the box. "I don't know what I thought."

Hunter reached for him, seeming sympathetic. He touched Cam's hand.

Cam knew what was happening the second before it happened, but he didn't know how. His breathe caught in his throat as the roaring in his ears drown out all possible thought, and he couldn't see anything. Everything was white. He could _feel _Hunter's hand,_ feel_ Hunter's voice, and _feel _Hunter's panic as his own, but he couldn't do anything about it. Then things cleared.

Cam knew where he was. He wasn't in the storage unit anymore. At least, his mind wasn't. Because he could still feel his body sitting on the concrete floor and pressed up against a crate with Hunter's hand in his own. But he was seeing something totally different.

What he saw was two little boys sitting in a sandbox. The first boy looked incredibly familiar, because he was Cam. He knew it was him when he was younger, it was impossible not to. The other boy with sandy brown hair looked just as familiar, because Cam had just seen him in a picture earlier that day. The picture Hunter had claimed was him at age 4.

They were there together, sitting directly across from each other, minding their own business. And then Hunter reached out and grabbed Cam's shovel, and Cam heard his own voice.

"Give that back, please."

"I'm just gonna borrow it."

Cam reached out to take the shovel back from Hunter, and then everything went white again. Cam, the real Cam, was tossed back out of the place. He felt like he hit the ground at 40 mph, and then he was back in the storage unit.

He tried desperately to catch his breath, and when his own heart stopped pounding in his ears he heard Hunter's labored breathing above his own. And he felt Hunter's hand in his again, squeezing so hard that both their knuckles were white.

"Did you… see that?" Cam panted.

Hunter nodded emphatically. "Yeah." He gasped. "I can't breathe."

"You're killing my hand." Cam struggled into a sitting position, and pried Hunter's hand off his own. As soon as he had done it he regretted it, because the world started to spin.

Hunter let out a panicky sound as he squeezed his hand into a fist. Cam could just barely make out the crimson rangers expression of absolute anguish.

He reached out to place his hand over Hunter's again without thinking, and Hunter's eyes sought his as the world settled back into place. They locked as Cam felt his breathing getting heavy again. There was something in Hunter's eyes that called out to him, and he found himself obeying. He didn't know what he was doing, and he didn't know why, he just knew that he wanted to. So when Hunter reached for him, he didn't resist. It was a hungry embrace, sparked by adrenaline from moments before.

Cam pushed Hunter back, lying on top of him as their kiss sent fire through his body. Colors exploded inside his eyelids. He was unable to think, unable to breath and he didn't care.

He'd never felt more at home than he did _right now_, trapped in Hunters embrace, their lips locked to one another.

And that scared him. He jolted back, pulling away from Hunter, but Hunter sat up with him, mumbling something that sounded like "please don't go".

Hunter pulled their lips back together, in a desperate need to hold onto the rush of feelings. He pushed Cam back against the crate they had been leaning against as he invaded ever essence of Cam's personal space. Cam complied for only a moment more, finally breaking their kiss and turning his head. He didn't pull away this time, didn't even move as Hunter's head smashed into his neck, his rapid breathing tingling Cam's neck wonderfully. Hunter pulled away from him slowly, giving him a questioning look.

Fighting what his body so desperately wanted, Cam spoke quietly, his voice nearly betraying him. "Please, Hunter. Don't. I'm not even… I'm not… gay."

Hunter watched him for a moment as he spoke, but Cam didn't dare look at him. He could feel the heavy wash of emotion that swept over Hunter at Cam's words, and it didn't feel good. It was the worst feeling he'd ever had.

"Could have fooled me." Hunter's words were barely a whisper, and they made his skin tingle with anger.

Hunter pushed himself away from a helpless Cam and stood, straightening out his clothes. He gave Cam one last long look before he turned and headed for the door.

And left Cam alone with his own thoughts. As the door banged shut Cam raised a hand to his swollen lips, unsure why his chest suddenly hurt so much.

Hunter had kissed him. He had kissed back. And it had felt like that best thing in the world. It had felt right. He didn't get it. He didn't even like Hunter. He wasn't attracted to him in the least. And well, yeah okay, Hunter was certainly no super model he wasn't totally unattractive either.

But Cam wasn't gay. Or at least, he didn't think he was. He shouldn't be. He'd never even looked at a guy. But he had kissed Hunter. Oh, god his chest hurt.

He brought a hand to his aching chest and held it, trying to run through his medical dictionary in his head. He sure hoped he wasn't having a heart attack.

* * *

He didn't know how long he sat there. He just wanted to stay there for as long as he possibly could. But he knew it was getting late, and he had to get home or someone would come looking for him. He didn't want anyone to find him here. 

So finally Cam stood, left the open box exactly how it was and walked out of the metal structure. He shut off the lights, and went to pick up the lock when he saw Hunter's truck.

Hunter had waited for him?

Cam clicked the lock into place and started down the steps towards Hunter's truck. God, he had no idea what to say. What could he possibly say after something like that?

Why the hell was Hunter still here?

Hunter had his head back and his eyes closed, and Cam thought he might be sleeping. He paused where he was, debating on whether of not to wake Hunter up or just leave him a note. But then Hunter's eyes snapped open and scared the crap out of him.

He tried not to jump. Really, there was no reason for Hunter to not know he was there. Still, it was creepy.

Hunter sat up and started the ignition, and waited. Cam didn't move. Finally, Hunter rolled down his window.

"You coming?" Hunter asked, a hint of venom in his voice. Cam nodded, for lack of an excuse, and went around to the passenger door.

He got in, Hunter put the truck in gear, and they drove off.

They didn't say one work on their way back to the academy.

* * *

That night, Cam didn't even think about sleep. He didn't want to sleep, for fear of what else this new dream might reveal. Cam was beginning to think that he'd prefer not to dream after all. 

He didn't want to have to think about the new… memories he had discovered.

Instead, he sat at his computer into the wee hours of the night, researching what he knew about his… _condition_. He really didn't know what else to call it.

He could find things for being dizzy, for feeling tired, for sleep deprivation, for blackouts, for hallucinations… but only for one person. He couldn't find anything about connections between two people causing all these sorts of things. There was nothing in any kind of medical dictionary, nothing in the Ninja scrolls, nothing anywhere.

But there was this one legend.

He found it in the Ninja archives when he typed in the words "flash of light, glowing, connection". Cam almost didn't read it, but it was the only result that fit, and what could it hurt, anyway?

It was very vague, as most legends tended to be. Personally, Cam wasn't all too fond of these sorts of things. He preferred a logical, scientific explanation to the mystical nobody really knows if it actually happened idea. Still, he was a bit intrigued.

It didn't list any names, but it spoke of sets of people, preordained by the mystics. Cam rolled his eyes. Mystics. Right. Sets of people, from different places, coming together because of a… bond. A calling that led them to one another in some way.

The descriptions worried him a bit.

The first instance ever documented had been long before the Ninja's had dominated the planet the way they did now. It was so far back, that the Ninja Academies were still _kingdoms_. Cam wasn't even sure they had any documents that old, and he wondered how this could be so documented.

He knew what legends really were; stories told by old Ninja's to pass the time. The got passed down and then some idiot actually started to believe them. Cam didn't know how they'd survived this long going by legends.

He kept reading anyway. With the 6 Ninja kingdoms at war, everyone thought all was lost. In an act of mass hysteria, the ninja's went out to fight one huge battle, and whoever was left won. It seemed not even the Ninja's had always been above barbarism. Strangely enough, the fight never happened. All the kingdoms were there, ready to fight, and two soldiers stopped them. The legend didn't say who they were, or what kingdom they were from. But they warned everyone to back off and everyone did.

They warned them with a flash a light. The ninja's were thought to be so powerful, they could keep everyone from fighting.

Cam rolled his eyes. It was ridiculous. Really.

So he kept reading, just to reaffirm that. There were more occasions where two people had come together to save others, using the powerful flashes of light. They were spread over a long period of time, some girls, some guys, some both. The document gave very few details on what actually happened to the people who had been "chosen".

At the end of the legend was this cryptic note:

_Hard to come by,  
__Harder to lose,  
__Bound partners  
__Who did not choose. _

_In life,  
__In death,  
__Together they must stay.  
__Or a costly price there will be to pay. _

_For be warned,  
__This power comes at a cost.  
__While unexpectedly revealed,  
__This prophecy is sealed. _

_To fight for the right,  
__In moments of most need,  
__These enemies turned lovers  
__Will never bleed. _

Cam felt sick to his stomach. Even with his stomach churning, there was only one thought going through his mind.

_Hunter. _


	5. Catastrophe and Cure

_AN: Thanks to all my lovely reviewers! I couldn't do this without you! Oh, and for those of you that complained about how I keep creating more questions instead of answering them... you're going to hate this chapter:) Enjoy!_

Hunter wasn't speaking to him. He found that out the next day at training. He wouldn't even look at him. Cam wanted to find a way to tell him what he'd found, but he couldn't think of anything to say. He wanted to discuss what they had seen, but there was no way to mention it without talking about that day. He figured avoiding Hunter was the safest route for now, but sooner or later he'd end up as miserable as he had been just yesterday.

He wanted to say something. Hell, he wanted a lot of things, and none of them made any sense to him.

The truth was, he wanted to kiss Hunter again.

It wasn't normal and he didn't understand it and he didn't _want_ to understand it. Still, he couldn't go about it now. Not after he'd humiliated himself in the storage unit the day before. Not after what he'd said to Hunter.

Still, he knew they'd have to talk eventually. They could pretend like it didn't happen. They could discuss it. They could just move on.

All seemed both highly unlikely and exactly like something Hunter might do. Cam had to say one thing for the blonde ninja; he was certainly unpredictable.

* * *

That night he had to sleep. He was just too tired after a long day of training not to. He never really fell into a deep sleep, but he drifted in and out for a long time. He wasn't really dreaming so much as he was thinking about things. 

He could see the pairs of eyes changing, overlapping with Hunter's hurt face as he pulled away from him. He saw the picture of Hunter and his mom overlap with the photo of Cam and his mother. Hunter held up in his moms arms at a young age. Cam holding his mothers hand shyly. Colors faded together and made new ones as visions of Hunter flashed through his head.

And the crystal clear memory of kissing Hunter made his lips burn. His skin tingled, and he was both angry and happy and disappointed and excited… none of his emotions were working properly, and he couldn't think straight. He shouldn't _want_ to kiss Hunter. He shouldn't _want_ to be with him.

But he _did_.

For the brief moments when Hunter's face wasn't behind his eyelids, he thought he could see the soldiers that had saved the world so long ago. Two men, united under a peaceful banner for the first time in the history of the Ninja.

He thought he could see the others, too. Maybe his mind was playing tricks on him, or maybe he just wanted to believe the legend, but he swore he could see them.

A raven haired princess, followed by an overconfident blond Prince. A sandy haired slaved girl, and a dark haired slave driver. A young Ninja training for the first time with an arrogant partner.

He knew they weren't real, but he could see their faces, imagine their stories. He could feel them in his mind, like maybe the legend was real. Like maybe there was something bigger going on that just him and Hunter.

Something shot through him then, like a muscle cramp he couldn't explain. His legs hurt, and he suddenly felt very cold. And scared. Which he shouldn't be. Then the feeling was gone just as quickly as it had come, but Cam couldn't bring himself to close his eyes again.

Cam sighed, rolled out of bed and got dressed. He'd drifted in and out of sleep for hours, but the images wouldn't go away. So sometime in the early morning before the sun had risen Cam was walking the grounds of the Academy in solitude.

He wanted to talk to Hunter. He just didn't know how. There was a part of him that didn't want to talk to Hunter ever again, but something told him that just wasn't possible.

He was really sick of agonizing over this.

He just knew he wasn't going to be the one to seek Hunter out this time. He'd done it once. It was Hunter's turn.

Hunter didn't come looking for him at all. In fact, Hunter didn't even show up to training that morning.

But Blake did.

When Cam entered Ninja Ops, he was a bit surprised to see Blake pacing as the others watched him silently.

"What's going on?" Cam asked. Blake's head snapped up with wide eyes.

"Cam!" Blake started towards him. "Hunter's missing."

Cam felt his stomach sink. "What?"

"He wasn't at the apartment this morning. Last night he said he was going for a drive, but he never came back. He won't answer his phone or his morpher. You have to find him Cam!" Blake rattled on. Cam was already heading for his computer.

"Why didn't anyone call me?" Cam wanted to know as he began accessing the morpher tracking systems.

"We tried. You didn't answer either." Tori told him in a worried tone. Cam frowned. Surely he would have heard his amulet chiming-

He wasn't wearing his amulet. Cam glanced down out of habit to find his neck bare. He reached up to touch the empty spot where his amulet should have been and then quickly dropped his hand.

"I must have forgotten to put my amulet on this morning." He mumbled. He would have to go back and get it from his room after he'd tracked Hunter.

_If_ he could track Hunter. Cam was only getting 5 signals, and they were all in Ninja Ops. Hunter should have his morpher. Cam took his amulet off when he slept, but he'd never known any of the rangers to take their morphers off for any reason.

Even if he'd taken it off, Cam should still be able to get the signal from it. So where the hell was it?

"What's taking so long?" Blake's frustrated voice broke through his train of thought. Cam shook his head.

"I can't get a fix on his morpher." Cam announced to the room.

"Lothor?" Shane was quick to jump to conclusions.

"I would have gotten some kind of warning about monsters." Cam glared at the screen in front of him.

"You weren't wearing your amulet though, so how would you know?" Tori asked him.

Cam frowned. He really should have remembered to put on his amulet.

Quickly he checked the logs from the night before. There was no strange activity of any kind. This just plain didn't make sense.

"Nothing. Try calling him again." He said over his shoulder. Shane was the first to his morpher.

"Hunter, come in." Shane tried. "This is Shane. Come in."

Nothing.

"The only way he could still be on earth and not be giving off a signal is if he was out of Blue Bay Harbor. Let me widen the search range." Cam opened up his search parameters to the surrounding counties.

A faint red arrow began flashing at the edge of the screen.

"That's him." Cam announced, pointing to the arrow for the other rangers to see.

"Why isn't he answering?" Blake wondered behind him. Cam shook his head.

"Let's go find out." He stood from his computer and the others began to file out.

"Cameron?" His father called out. He hadn't spoken until now, and Cam hadn't realized he was in the room.

"Yeah?" Cam stopped and faced him.

"Your amulet?" His father reminded. Cam almost smacked himself on the head.

"Right." He turned back to the other rangers. "I'll be right there."

He raced back to his room to find his amulet. Forgetting it just wasn't like him, and he'd done it twice in the same day. He couldn't figure out why he hadn't put it on in the first place. He had probably been two distracted. Still, it worried him.

He found it resting on top of the legend he had printed out for Hunter. He grabbed it and put it on, letting the familiar weight settle around his neck. He felt a little better knowing he had it, and he headed back out to join the others.

They streaked to the area where Hunter's signal had been. Mostly because driving would have taken a few hours and Hunter might be in some kind of trouble. They could have teleported, but it wasn't totally tested yet, and Cam would really prefer to only have to deal with one accident at a time. He didn't need someone missing an arm because he hadn't paid enough attention to what he was doing.

They reached the area in a matter of minutes, but there was no sign of Hunter. There were some trees, and the highway was just up a hill. He didn't have to see the other ranger's faces to know they were thinking the same thing he was. Hunter had driven off the road.

Blake put his hands to his mouth in a cup shape. "Hunter!"

Nothing.

"You sure this is it?" Shane asked him as he glanced around. Cam nodded.

"I couldn't get a direct fix. But this is the general area." Cam glanced around warily.

"Alright, let's split up. Tori, Blake, you head back towards Blue Bay Harbor along the highway. Dustin, head away from the highway further in towards the woods, just in case. Cam, you keep going along the highway in the other direction. I'll head to the other side and check over there." Shane announced.

"Jinkies, gang." Tori joked, and Dustin cracked a smile. "Be careful guys."

And they all headed off in their separate directions. Shane flew up the hill with little effort and was out of sight and earshot faster than the rest of them. Cam began walking, but he could still hear Blake's frantic calls for his brother for several minutes. The last thing he heard was Dustin calling "Dude, this isn't funny!"

He walked quickly, glancing around for any sign of the crimson truck or shirt that would be Hunter. He must be unconscious, or he would have answered his morpher. Cam was actually more worried than he had been willing to let on in front of the others. All the while, the cryptic rhyme was replaying in his head.

_Hard to come by, harder to lose… _Cam walked close to the highway, but then began to wonder if he was missing something further in.

_Bound partners who did not choose… _He headed inwards a little ways in case Hunter had skidded out of control. If he'd been going too fast he could have gone pretty far.

_In life, in death, together they must stay… _Cam started calling out to Hunter. He couldn't explain it, but his heart was beating a little faster with every step he took.

_Or a costly price there will be to pay… _He was a bit afraid of what he might find if he did find Hunter.

_For be warned, this power comes at a cost… While unexpectedly revealed,_ _this prophecy is sealed… _Cam tried not to think about it. He just needed to find Hunter. He would worry about what state the blonde ninja was in when he found him.

_To fight for the right, in moments of most need… _Still, he couldn'tput the thought out of his mind that Hunter was hurt. It was a bit unnerving how much that scared him.

_These enemies turned lovers will never bleed… _God, he really hoped Hunter was okay.

As he stepped around a rather large boulder, his breath caught. There before him, not ten feet away, was Hunter's truck.

"Hunter!" Cam screamed and dashed for the truck. Its front was smashed against a tree, and it was missing a tire. He skidded to a stop beside the truck and placed his hand on the open window for balance.

Cam felt a sting in his hand as he realized the window hadn't been rolled down. It was smashed, and the broken glass had just cut his hand open. He pulled his hand up quickly with a hiss and glanced at it as the blood tricked down his fingers. He closed in into a fist and went to check on Hunter.

He couldn't get the door to the truck open, so he reached in to check Hunter's pulse. He was pressed forward over his steering wheel, passed out cold. There was a cut on his cheek and his lip was split. Cam wasn't sure, but he thought Hunter's legs were trapped.

Suddenly the feeling of dread he'd had in bed earlier flickered through his mind, and he tried to shake it off. Had he known Hunter had crashed? Had he… felt it?

Hunter stirred at Cam's touch, and Cam went to shake his shoulder gently. "Hunter? Can you hear me?"

Hunter's eyes fluttered, but he didn't open them. His mouth opened briefly, and then stilled.

"Hunter." Cam's voice was harsher this time. "Stay with me. Wake up."

"Cam?" Hunter whispered. Cam nodded, but Hunter's eyes were still closed.

"I'm right here. Don't worry; I'll get you out of here." Cam assured. He tried to pry the door open once more.

Hunter's voice was tired and dry, but it sounded a bit amused. "What took you so long?"

Cam felt the corner of his mouth turn up, but he ignored it. He pulled as hard as he could, but the door was jammed shut. He could use ninja force to open it, but he was afraid that might be too hard on Hunter, who was looking rather fragile. Hunter stirred as Cam jostled the door.

"Try the other side." Hunter suggested, and Cam wanted to smack himself. _Duh._

Cam went around to the passenger side door and yanked it open. Hunter was still facing the other direction, and Cam laid a tentative hand on his shoulder.

"Are you hurt?" He wondered as he crawled in the seat a little ways.

"I can't feel my legs." Hunter's voice sounded kind of panicky as he turned his head.

Cam took a deep breathe as he went to study Hunters legs. "When you say can't feel…"

Hunter made a noise as Cam squeezed a part of Hunter's leg. "I think they're just stuck. No blood." Hunter mumbled.

"No circulation." Cam corrected him out of habit. He was just really glad Hunter was talking. It occurred to him he should really call the others. They were still looking.

He was picking up his amulet when Hunter whined. "My arm hurts like a mother…" He mumbled.

"Can you sit back?" Cam asked him. Hunter was still pressed against the steering wheel.

Hunter nodded. He didn't move though. "Help?"

Cam dropped his amulet and reached out to help Hunter sit back. He heard a rather menacing pop and Hunter grimaced, but he was able to sit back against the seat.

"How'd you find me?" Hunter wanted to know. Cam reached out to inspect his left arm.

"Tracked your morpher. What were you thinking, driving all the way out here?" Cam snapped as he saw Hunter's bloodied arm and hand. It wasn't really mangled, but it was definitely cut up. Probably from the broken glass on the window.

"You." Hunter answered him.

"What?" Cam tried not to look at him.

"I was thinking about you." Hunter admitted. He must have been in a lot of pain to say that. "I must have fallen asleep."

"That wasn't what I meant." Cam tried not to blush. "You shouldn't have been driving." Cam told him quietly. He picked up his amulet with his free hand. The other was covering one of Hunter's deeper cuts. "Guys, come in."

"Go Cam." Shane answered immediately.

"I found him. He'd a little beat up, but he's okay." Cam told them.

"Thank god." He heard Blake mumble.

"We'll be right there." Tori told him. He heard the links cut off one by one and he dropped his amulet to his neck once more.

"Have you got a rag or something in here? This cut is still bleeding." Cam tapped Hunter's shoulder, because he'd closed his eyes again. "Hey. Don't go to sleep on me. Stay awake."

"In the glove box." Hunter mumbled as he eyes fluttered. Cam nodded. He let go of Hunter's arm with his good hand to reach for the glove box and held Hunter's hand steady with his other. "Ah! That stings!"

Hunter's exclamation was the last thing he heard before the sensation shot up his arm and through his entire body. He was on fire. No, he was freezing. Scratch that, he was definitely on fire. Just like before, the colors exploded before Cam's eyes and he tried to hold onto some sense of what was up and what was down.

He was spinning, but he couldn't figure out how. His head hurt, and he could just barely make out Hunter's silhouette. His ears were roaring, he couldn't see, he was hot, he was cold… this wasn't like the jolts of energy. This was _painful_.

Cam tried to yank his hand away from Hunter's arm but he couldn't move it. The light that was blinding him was radiating from there, not from inside his head. He felt Hunter's hand on his shirt as the light began to die down. Slowly, the feeling of unease drifted back out of his body and through his arm, where he was finally able to yank his hand way from Hunter's arm.

Which was a really big mistake, he realized as soon as he'd done it. He felt dizzy and sick the second he lost contact with Hunter, and he reached out blindly to find him again.

What he found was Hunters lips. With his own. He was kissing Hunter with a savagery he hadn't realized he possessed, but he wasn't the only one. Hunter's fingers digging into his shoulder were almost painful, and his tongue was doing something wonderful in Cam's mouth. As they kissed, the world settled back down around him, and as soon as he could think straight again he yanked himself away.

"Stop." He commanded. Hunter let out a muffled yelp and thrashed his head back against the seat. "The others will be here any second."

"I don't care." Hunter muttered. "Screw 'em."

"Stop." He repeated. He realized he was holding Hunter's arm again, but he was reluctant to move. He didn't want the world to start spinning again. He wanted to be able to think.

But something did make him move his hand. He moved down Hunter's arm, to where he could see what _should_ have been Hunter's injury.

Only there was nothing there. His arm was still bloody, but there were no visible cuts. Cam wasn't sure what he was seeing. Hunter's arm had been a mess only seconds ago, and now…

Now the only trace of the injury he'd had was the blood that remained, and a faint pink line that trailed his arm underneath Cam's hand. Cam gently turned over his own hand, and where his own cut he had made on the glass moments ago had been was the same faint pink line.

"Hunter." He whispered gently. He felt Hunter move, but couldn't pull his eyes away from the sight of his healed hand. "Look."

"The hell?" Hunter sounded about half as baffled as Cam felt. He could feel Hunter's eyes on him, and he turned his head to look at him.

Reflecting in Hunter's eyes was the same question Cam was sure was in his own.

_How?_


	6. Your Hand In Mine

_AN: Okay, for all of you out there who are reading this and favoriting or alerting it and __not reviewing it__, I CAN SEE YOU. I have that alert that tells me when you do that! And You're On My List. Seriously, reviewing isn't all that hard, and I would REALLY appreciate it. And FYI, that's the only way off my list. So, get to it. And for all the lovely people that do review, here, have a cookie. :)_

The others helped him get Hunter out of his truck, but he was so sore and weak that they practically had to carry him back to Ops. Blake was insisting that Hunter go to the hospital, but Hunter refused.

"Anything I need, Cam can do." He told them all as he leaned heavily on Dustin and Blake. Cam caught his eye, and he understood the meaning of those words even if no one else did. "Now what about my truck?"

Blake looked scandalized. His face turned as red as Shane's uniform. "You almost died Hunter! You drove off the freaking road in the middle of nowhere! You could have been killed! Who gives a damn about your stupid truck?!"

"We're always almost dying!" Hunter shouted back. Obviously, he'd had enough of Blake trying to baby him. "We fight for our lives every day! The only difference was that this time it was my fault."

Blake shut up after that. Shane offered to stay with the truck until the highway patrol showed up, and the rest of them streaked Hunter back to Ops.

His father lectured Hunter about the consequences of his actions before he would allow Cam to take him back to the medical bay to clean him up. Hunter just nodded reluctantly like he wasn't really listening, and Cam hadn't actually heard a word his father said either. He was too busy watching the focus drift in and out of Hunter's eyes worriedly.

They were excused from training for a few hours while they attended to Hunter's situation. Blake wouldn't leave Hunter's side, which was both comforting and annoying. Comforting, because that way Hunter wouldn't try to kiss him again. And annoying, because Cam couldn't talk to Hunter.

Cam ran scans on Hunter to make sure he was okay, but somehow he knew he was. There was no internal bleeding, no stitch worthy cuts, and while he might have a minor concussion, it was actually kind of miraculous that he was as untouched as he was. With a day of rest and lots of fluids he'd be just fine.

It took him quite a while to assure Blake of this, and after what seemed like forever, Blake finally left Hunter to rest. He really was protective of the older thunder, which wasn't all that strange really, but Cam hadn't ever seen him so upset.

When he left, Hunter looked at his arm carefully. "What was that back there?" Hunter asked him from the medical bed. Cam crossed his arms.

"I have no idea." He said for what felt like the 100th time. "I have absolutely no idea. Okay, well I have some idea, but it's ridiculous. Or at least I thought it was, until now. I don't know what to think, Hunter, because every time I think I have something about this figured out, something weirder happens." Cam flailed his hands to the sides as he talked and was a bit annoyed when Hunter smirked at him. He turned away and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

He felt Hunter moving behind him, and he turned to find Hunter standing and fiddling with one of Cam's tools. "Would you let me try something?" Hunter asked as he looked up at him from underneath his eyelashes.

Cam thought he'd let Hunter try just about anything when he looked at him like that. He was almost appalled at himself for letting that thought so much as enter his mind, let alone admit it was true. Hunter was looking at him with a grin, so he shrugged.

Things really couldn't get much worse.

Hunter's gaze never left his as he took a step towards him and picked up Cam's hand. Cam knew what he was going to do before he did it, which was kind of scary and kind of cool at the same time. He took the sharp instrument he was holding and cut Cam's finger open.

His hand tingled where Hunter was holding it, and stung where he cut it open. Hunter took a deep breathe, and then put the instrument down. Just in case. Then he took Cam's bleeding finger and held it up to the cut on his cheek. He took a deep breathe, and Cam did the same, and then Hunter pressed their two open wounds together.

It happened again. Blinding light emanating from where the two open wounds connected, roaring in his ears, pain shooting through his mind, hot, cold, hot, cold. All the same sensations going through him, just like before. He wasn't sure which way was up or which way was down, and he felt like he was floating. He wanted to scream, but couldn't make the sound come out.

Finally, the light faded away, leaving Hunter and himself breathing heavily and wincing from the rush of sensations.

Hunter's mouth was on his again, and Cam had to admit that it was the perfect chaser for the strange and painful sensation. Unlike the other touches, kissing Hunter sent something through his body that made him feel good. The longer he kissed Hunter, the better he felt. Hunter pushed him backwards against the cupboards, and he was sorely reminded of a few days prior when Hunter has shoved him against them in anger. Hunter's hand was on his cheek holding him in place, and his other was wrapped firmly around Cam's waste.

Cam wrapped an arm around Hunter's neck and ran his free one down Hunter's face. Hunter was pressed up against him so hard Cam could barely breathe, but he didn't care as long as Hunter kept kissing him like that.

Suddenly Cam was fighting the urge to push him away. It felt _good_. He _wanted_ it.

And he knew he _shouldn't_.

Cam pushed at Hunters shoulders, but Hunter wasn't backing off. He pushed harder and closed his mouth, but Hunter wouldn't let up.

Desperate, Cam thought as hard as he could at Hunter. _Hunter, please stop_.

_Why?_ Hunter's voice ghosted across his mind.

_Please._ Cam repeated. Hunter's fist slammed against the cupboards behind him and he pushed off from the wall and headed back to the medical bed.

Cam sank to the floor right where he was. He closed his eyes and tried to stop feeling so dizzy. The last thing he was going to do was reach for Hunter again.

"I'm sorry." Hunter whispered from the bed. Cam opened his eyes to glance at him. His back was turned, and he was leaning heavily on the medical bed.

Cam didn't know what to say. So he settled for the only ting he'd wanted to say all day. "I found something about all this. You should read it."

Hunter turned on him with an angry look. Cam had a feeling that wasn't what he had wanted to hear. "I just want to know what goes through your head when I kiss you. Because if its anything like what goes through mine then why the hell are you pushing me away?!"

Cam starred up at him. "I can't do this, Hunter. I don't know what's happening here but its not-"

"I know that isn't true! I can feel it when I kiss you, Cam. I know you want this as badly as I do, so just kiss me and stop torturing both of us!" Hunter yelled at him. He looked too pale, Cam noticed.

"Sit down, Hunter." Cam ordered him.

Hunter ran a hand over his face in frustration. "I don't _want_ to sit down. I _want_ to kiss you. And yeah, it doesn't make much sense to me either, but I know what I want."

Cam frowned up at him indignantly. "I know what I want."

"Do you?" Hunter shot back.

Yeah, Cam knew what he wanted. He did want Hunter. He didn't know why. He knew it had something to do with what was going on between them now, because he distinctly remembered hating him not so long ago. And quite frankly, Hunter still wasn't on the top of his 'most amiable companions' list.

But he wanted him. And that wasn't normal. Cam wasn't willing to give into something he didn't understand so soon. Even if Hunter was.

Hunter was tired of waiting for his answer. "What did you say you found?" He asked dejectedly as he sat down. Cam pushed his glasses up on his nose.

"It's a bit complicated. I'll get it for you." Cam left Hunter alone in the medical bay to return to his room.

Even when the door shut, Cam thought he could still feel Hunter's disappointment.

* * *

When he reentered the room several minutes later after grabbing the document and giving Hunter time to cool off, he found Hunter lying on the medical bed. His eyes were closed, but Cam knew he was awake. Hunter's shoulders tensed when he was awake, and relaxed when he was asleep. Cam wasn't sure when he had become so familiar with Hunter's habits.

He tossed the printed copy of the legend on Hunter's chest. Hunter started and reached up to pull the papers toward him. Cam went over and propped himself up on the counter as he waited for Hunter to read it.

Either he read really fast, or he was just skimming it, because he was flipping the pages rather quickly. He lingered on the last page for a very long time before looking up.

"You think this is what happened to us?" Hunter sounded confused.

"Maybe. I don't really believe in all that folklore, but if there were any other occurrences of what's been happening to us, nobody would know how to explain it any other way. It's all I could find anywhere." Cam explained under Hunter's critical eye.

Hunter looked skeptical, and at the same time he looked worried. "Enemies turned lovers will never bleed?"

Cam shook his head. "I don't know what it means. I just thought I'd share."

"When did you find this?" Hunter wanted to know. He was flipping through it more carefully now.

"That night we went to the storage unit. I searched for it when I got home." Cam admitted.

"And you didn't tell me until now?" Hunter asked.

Cam shrugged. "You can have that copy if you want. I have the file on my computer."

Hunter nodded. "Thanks." He looked over at Cam. "So, do I get a clean bill of health, then?"

"Just try to stay out of trouble." Cam told him with a smirk. Hunter nodded and hopped off the bed. He headed for the door.

"Cam?" He stopped with his hand on the door handle. "Thanks for finding me."

"I wasn't the only one looking." Cam told him. Hunter looked back over his shoulder at him with one of those looks Cam didn't know how to read.

"You're still the one who found me." Hunter pointed out.

"One of us had to." Cam argued back. "Laws of probability."

Hunter sighed and turned back around. "Let's try that again. I'll say 'thanks', and you say 'you're welcome'." He paused, as though to make sure Cam understood. His voice was softer when he spoke again. "Thanks for finding me."

Cam sighed. "You're welcome."

Hunter nodded, seeming to be satisfied, turned the handle to the room and left. The door clicked shut, and Cam let out a long slow breath.

The feeling of kissing Hunter was still clinging to his senses, and he had a feeling it wasn't going to go away any time soon.

* * *

The next few days passed in a blur. Cam couldn't think about anything but Hunter, and that made fighting difficult. Lothor attacked twice in one day, and while he was glad for the distraction he was exhausted too.

He found himself fighting side by side with Hunter more and more often. It was easier to function when he was close by. He felt more aware, stronger, and more powerful. Plus he could practically sense what Hunter was doing, and it was incredibly easy to coordinate their movements. Before they hadn't even been able to spar together successfully. Now they were taking out more kelzaks than the rest of the team put together.

Hunter pretty much avoided him in conversation, and Blake was keeping him under house arrest. Cam didn't see much of him, let alone much of him away from the others. A few times though, Hunter sought him out for that casual touch that would keep them going. They had gotten better at handling the jolt of energy that shot through them, and Cam had even started to look forward to it.

Hunter would lean over the back of his chair and touch his hand when no one was looking. He'd smack Cam on the shoulder and let his hand glide across Cam's neck. He'd even grabbed Cam's hand once when they had trailed back behind the others.

He hadn't dreamt in three nights, but at least he'd slept. Still, something about sleeping felt empty without dreaming. He supposed he hadn't known what he was missing before.

He tried not to think about Hunter before bed. If he was going to dream, the last thing he wanted to dream about was kissing Hunter. Because, you know, he didn't think about that enough already. Luckily, he hadn't been alone with Hunter in days, so there was really nothing to worry about. If they could just keep things going like this, then they'd be fine.

Secretly, Cam knew that wasn't true. This wasn't going to work forever, and they needed to find a solution to this… _thing_ between them. He'd begun thinking of it as a bond, if only for the wording in that stupid legend.

His one current mission was to find a way to dissolve it. If there was one. And even if there wasn't, he was going to find one. There was no way he was going to spend the rest of his life tolerating Hunter Bradley.

It was midnight by the time he got tired enough to actually think about bed. He needed to do something to clear his head first, so he started running over systems in Ninja Ops, in the Zords, in the weapons… anything that was just mindless coding. That was what he needed. Not to think.

Thinking just got him into trouble these days.

The scariest part was that he felt the footsteps before he actually heard them. That told him there was no question to who could be coming down the stairs. After all, who else's movements could he _feel_ without sight or sound?

He watched Hunter's reflection walk into Ninja Ops. He didn't turn around to acknowledge him, because Hunter had to know Cam knew he was there. He looked around, as though to make sure Cam didn't have any other visitors, or perhaps to check to see if Sensei was there. Cam just kept coding. Maybe if he didn't acknowledge him he'd go away.

Of course, that was probably wishful thinking. Hunter came right over to Cam's chair, stared at the screen for about 20 seconds, and then sat something down on the desk next to Cam and left the room. He went into the kitchen, and Cam took the time to look at the bag Hunter had set down. It read "Ben & Jerry's".

Oh, great.

Hunter returned a moment later with two spoons, sat down on Cam's desk, and opened up the bag. He proceeded to pull out a pint of ice cream, opened it, and offered Cam a spoon. Cam just looked at him.

After a moment of this, Hunter reached over and placed the spoon in Cam's hand. Cam sighed dramatically.

"What are you doing here?" He asked as he set the spoon down next to the open carton of ice cream.

"Escaping." Hunter explained as he took a bite of ice cream. "Blake's smothering me. Had to get out. Want some ice cream?"

To his own horror, Cam didn't immediately object. "What kind is it?"

"Chunky Monkey." Hunter grinned like an innocent kid. Cam rolled his eyes.

"I don't think so." Cam turned away from Hunter and went back to his coding.

"Oh, come on. Live a little." Hunter teased as he took a spoon full of ice cream and waved it around Cam's face.

"Stop." Cam commanded in a condescending tone. "No thanks."

"You'll be sorry when it's gone." Hunter warned pointedly.

_I won't be sorry when you're gone…_ Cam thought as he glared at the computer.

"I heard that!" Hunter objected immediately, and Cam grimaced.

"Sorry. Forgot about that." Cam tried to clear his mind and not think anything to offensive. If there was one thing that really pissed him off about this situation, it was the lack of privacy he had in his own head. This whole trading thoughts thing only worked when they were in close proximity, and since he was hardly ever close to Hunter long enough to worry about it, he tended to forgot that Hunter was in his head.

"Just for that, I'm not leaving." Hunter told him determinedly. Cam sighed.

"Dug my own grave, I guess." He smirked a little as he said it, and Hunter scoffed.

"What are you doing?" He wanted to know as he glanced at the screen out of the corner of his eye.

"Working." Cam supplied.

"On what?" Hunter wondered absently. He sounded genuinely curious.

Cam wasn't actually sure what he was doing. That was the point of coding; you didn't have to really pay attention to what you were working on. Finally, he just answered "Stuff."

Hunter grinned. "Better question: are you ever not working?"

"Better question: why are you here?" Cam echoed Hunter's statement with one of his own instead of answering.

Hunter shrugged nonchalantly. "Couldn't think of any other place I wanted to be."

Cam didn't know what to say to that. It probably hadn't been meant to sound as mushy as it did, but he couldn't help the embarrassment he felt. Hunter just spoke without thinking, or he was completely honest almost all the time. It was a bit unnerving.

"Sorry." Hunter apologized sheepishly. "Didn't mean to make you blush."

Cam sputtered. "I wasn't blushing!"

Hunter just grinned at him, then picked up Cam's discarded spoon and handed it back to him. "Have some ice cream, Cam."

Begrudgingly, Cam obeyed. He didn't like the idea of doing what he was told, but he couldn't think of any reason not to.

"Have you got another chair in this place?" Hunter asked a moment later. "This desk is really kind of hard to get comfortable on."

He wanted to get comfortable? Cam didn't even want to think about the implications of that. He could say no, and Hunter might just get uncomfortable enough to leave… or he would probably just stay there and put up with it. Because Hunter did that.

Cam stood and walked over to the hallway, where he hit a keypad and a closet appeared. He pulled out a fold up chair for Hunter and closed the closet. It vanished back into the wall, and Cam returned with the chair. He unfolded it and set it down next to his for Hunter to sit on, but Hunter was gazing at the wall suspiciously.

"What other kind of hidden rooms do you have in this place?" He asked.

"They aren't hidden." Cam shrugged as he sat back down. "Not to me, anyway."

"Not fair." Hunter muttered grouchily as he shifted down into his chair.

"Life isn't fair." Cam responded automatically. He took another spoonful of ice cream and felt Hunter's eyes on him. "What?"

"Pessimist." Hunter accused. Cam glanced over at him.

"If that isn't the pot calling the kettle black…" Cam began, and Hunter waved him off.

"I'm only pessimistic in some situations. You're just generally a glass half empty kind of guy." Hunter leaned his head on his hand in a relaxed sort of way.

"I don't think you count as a glass half full guy." Cam muttered in response. Hunter did a sort of half shrug and didn't answer.

So Cam went back to his coding while Hunter watched him. He was a little creeped out that he wasn't creeped out by Hunter's presence, in fact is was actually sort of nice. He knew he'd regret thinking that the second he did, and he felt Hunter let out a puff of amusement next to him.

_Yeah, actually. It is. A little boring maybe, but nice._ Hunter's voice drifted into his head like an echo.

"Don't do that." Cam shivered involuntarily. "It's weird."

"Sometimes I can't help it. And I think it's cool." Hunter told him happily.

_You can help it. You just have no self restraint._ Cam thought at him angrily. _You don't catch me reading your thoughts every free second, do you?_

Hunter reached out to poke his arm. _Do you really mind? _

Cam looked over at him. _It's the principal of the thing._

Hunter grinned. "I'll try to be good." Hunter's voice was very loud in the quiet room after having had that quiet conversation in their heads. _But I don't think we should have any secrets._

Cam looked at him incredulously. "This isn't a relationship we're working on here, Hunter. We're just trying to get through this. No secrets? You don't even know me."

Hunter's grin melted off his face into a moody expression. "Whose fault is that?"

Cam opened his mouth to say something, and then shut it quickly. He turned back to his computer with a scowl. "The last time I checked, you didn't care."

"Well I care now." Hunter said gently. He was trying to coddle him, and Cam really didn't appreciate that at all. _Tell me whatever you want to, or don't. Balls in your court, Cam._

Cam frowned. What had that happened? He was struck with the sudden urge to be civil and actually talk to Hunter, but he quickly pushed it to the back of his mind and went with the urge telling him to tell Hunter off, instead. "Look, I didn't ask you to come here. I didn't ask for this to happen. I'm dealing with it the best that I can, and I'm not about to start pouring my heart out to you over it."

Hunter sighed and pursed his lips. "You don't know anything about me, either." He pointed out as though he hadn't heard Cam's words.

"I know all I need to know about you. You're a stubborn, annoying, irrepressible brat. You have no respect for privacy or personal space, and you are the last person I want to spend my time with. Did I miss anything?" Cam growled.

To his surprise, Hunter didn't get upset and storm out as he'd thought he would. Instead, the blonde ninja started twirling his spoon in the melting ice cream with a thoughtful expressing.

Cam let out a strangled groan and turned back to his computer.

"When I was 7 I broke my left leg." Hunter said suddenly. "Bet you didn't know that."

Cam looked over at him disbelievingly. The corners of Hunter's mouth turned up as he tried to suppress a smile.

God, Hunter was _annoying_. He just didn't take a hint. And somehow, Cam found that to be an endearing quality. He wasn't sure if he was just out of his mind or really tired or if he actually was impressed at the thunder's persistence. He knew he was at least partially out of his mind, because why else would he even be considering talking to Hunter? But then, the bond was to blame for that. So, yeah, maybe he could just be crazy for a while and indulge Hunter. There were worse things. He couldn't think of any right now, but he was sure there were.

Cam shook his head slowly as he raised his eyebrows. "No, I didn't know that."

"See? You don't know everything." Hunter told him gently. Cam sighed, and leaned back in his chair, turning slightly to face Hunter.

"Enlighten me, then." Cam challenged. Hunter smiled at him, and went off into some story about how he broke his leg.

Cam learned more about Hunter that night than he'd ever needed to know. Hunter told him about his broken leg, other injuries he'd acquired, a pet lizard he'd had when he was 6, the time he'd had the chicken pox, how he'd learned to ride a motorbike, and a lot of other little stories like that. A lot of them included Blake, or his parents, and sometimes Sensei Omino or Leanne. Cam actually found himself smiling at some of them, laughing at others, and feeling bad for Hunter at the appropriate times.

It was all kind of surreal. He was really tired, but at the same time he didn't want to go to sleep. He listened to Hunter ramble about his life as thought it was the only thing he should be doing. He responded when it was necessary, and even added in a few of his own stories until before he knew it he was prattling on in the same absurd fashion. Hunter listened and grinned and did all the same things.

And so they talked. Like it was the easiest thing in the world. It made no sense, but Cam was about as happy as he could ever remember being just sitting there with Hunter.

God, what was happening to him?

Hunter did his best to stay out of Cam's thoughts, and Cam invaded his a little bit. Overall, having this conversation was the easiest thing he'd done in days.

Cam leaned down to mirror Hunter's position. His computer had got to screensaver long ago, and Hunter was slouched lazily, propping his head up with his hand. Cam was pretty sure they'd discussed just about everything but their current situation. He had no idea how late it was, but he was sure it was so late it could be considered early.

"And you know, the funniest part was that I just kept walking. I mean, there I was with this piece of metal sticking through my leg, and all I could think about was how mad my mom was going to be that I was late for dinner." Hunter's amused grin was replaced by a wistful look.

"Things are easier when you're a kid." Cam muttered with a yawn. "Everything is just black and white. You don't understand the big picture."

"You don't even know the big picture exists. It's like you don't want to see the world as a whole, but rather be aware of only those things that directly concern you." Hunter corrected. Cam grinned and nodded. "Best part of being a kid."

"You miss being a kid?" He asked teasingly.

"Me? Come on. I never grew up." Hunter teased. Something about those words mad Cam sad, but he couldn't explain why. "What about you?"

Cam shrugged. "I don't think I ever was one. Not really, anyway."

Hunter rolled his eyes. "Everyone was a kid at one point. Everyone did stupid things kids do. I think you've just blocked them out."

Cam grinned halfheartedly. "Maybe." He admitted. "I don't like being made a fool of."

"It isn't easy." Hunter opined. "Making you look foolish."

"Try often?" Cam wondered.

"I will now. Watch your back, Watanabe." Hunter pointed at him with his spoon. The ice cream was long gone now.

Cam rolled his eyes. "Somehow, I'm not worried."

Hunter picked up the nearly empty ice cream carton and put its lid back on. He didn't attempt to take it to the garbage or anything, just fiddled with it instead. "You know, when my parents died, it wasn't so easy to be a kid anymore. When you're a kid its like time just goes on forever. You think that your parents will always be there, and that people only die on TV. Then when bad things happen… you're forced to grow up too fast. The things that used to be important just… aren't anymore."

Cam watched Hunter fiddle with the ice cream carton as he talked. "When my mom died, the first thing my dad did was pack up everything of hers and put it away. For him, not being around her things made it easier to forget about her. That's the thing with being grown up. You get so selfish." Cam mused quietly. "He did what he needed to feel better. He was so caught up in his own grief that he didn't even think about what I needed."

"What did you need?" Hunter wondered casually, in a way that suggested he would take whatever Cam said at face value.

Cam sighed, reached out to toy with his used ice cream spoon. "I needed my mom." He let the spoon fall with a clatter. "I can't even remember what her voice sounded like. I was just too young. He took everything of hers away, and without anything of hers around… it just became harder and harder to remember her. Before I knew it, I couldn't remember anything about her."

"What was it like seeing her again?" Hunter asked curiously. "When you went back. Did you even really know it was her?"

"I knew her face. Her voice was good to hear. It was just… that wasn't my mother. That was Miko Dominea, student of the Wind Academy. It was like meeting someone you knew you were supposed to remember, but not being able to make her fit into those memories." That journey back had been one of the hardest things Cam had ever done, and he'd been let down.

"That must have hurt." Hunter muttered. Cam nodded, but he didn't say anything else. "God, don't you just wish you could go back to those days when everything was simple? I mean, all you knew were your colors, the addition tables, and simple nursery rhymes, but it didn't bother you, because you didn't know what you didn't know, and you didn't care." Hunter paused. "Did that make sense?"

Cam smirked. "Surprisingly, yes." Cam finally took the ice cream carton from Hunter and tossed it in the garbage. Hunter looked at him irately. "At least when you got to see your parents they knew who you were."

Hunter seemed to think about that. Cam was really tempted to read his thoughts a little and see what exactly he was thinking, but he hated it when Hunter did that, so he refrained. Finally though, Hunter took a shaky breath and answered. "I wanted so badly to bring them back that I got caught up in something that almost got me and Blake killed. Grief does funny things to you."

Cam sighed. "It isn't easy to be left behind. The import thing is that we know our parents loved us, mushy as that sounds."

"It doesn't sound all that bad." Hunter chuckled.

"What do you think this dream means?" Cam wondered finally. It was the first either of them had spoken aloud about the dream since that day in the storage unit. "I mean our moms and us and that flash… it just doesn't fit."

"I have no idea. You're the smart one." Hunter teased lightly. Cam rolled his eyes. "You're supposed to figure that out. I'm just the plucky comic relief."

"You're smart." Cam admitted, albeit a little reluctantly. "Just not focused."

"Boy that must have been hard to say." Hunter chuckled, and Cam joined him.

"Yeah, compliments aren't my thing." Cam said impishly.

Hunter laughed. "Were you not cuddled enough as a child? Because you're not very good in social situations."

Cam snorted. "You're one to talk."

"Okay, so we both have some work to do." Hunter teased. "I'll try if you will." He offered his free hand over to Cam, and Cam stared at it.

He was a little afraid to take it, because touching Hunter kept getting him into trouble. But they had no open cuts on their hands, and the jolt of energy was actually rather pleasant in the long shot. So Cam reached out and grasped Hunter's hand.

No jolt of energy this time. Instead, a very pleasant feeling washed over him, and he suddenly felt very at peace. He caught Hunter's eye, and he saw a question there that Hunter wasn't willing to say aloud.

_It wouldn't have to mean anything, you know._ Hunter whispered in his mind. _It could just be a kiss._

Cam sighed, knowing he wanted the same things Hunter did but unable to justify them like he could. His gaze never left Hunter's as he answered. _It would mean something to me._

Hunter nodded and looked back at their joined hands. _Why does that scare you? _

Cam watched him lace their fingers together gently. _I'm not sure anymore._

Hunter's mouth turned up at the corners briefly, and then he dropped Cam's hand. The loss of his touch made Cam's heart ache, and he wanted to reach out for him again. He didn't, and they avoided each others gaze for several minutes.

"I'm just not…" Cam hesitated, unable to get the word to pass his lips.

"Gay. I know. I remember." Hunter muttered. "If you want to get technical about it, neither am I. I just know what I feel…" _And I feel something for you._

Cam couldn't help it. He reached out and grabbed Hunter's hand again. He had no idea what Hunter would read into that. Maybe nothing. Maybe everything. He didn't care.

He just wanted to hold his hand. Hunter laced their fingers together easily and laid his head down on the desk. Cam followed suit.

They stared at each other for a long time, until Cam felt sleep pulling him in. He felt safe, and happy, and he was perfectly willing to fall asleep next to Hunter.

Which, in and of itself, spoke for his dwindling sanity.


	7. So Long, Lonesome

_AN: Thanks to all the lovely people who read my last message and reviewed. You are forgiven. I think it really helps the mood of the dream sequences if you listen to something calm and tranquil while you read them. I recommend "Secret Life of Daydreams" from the Pride and Prejudice soundtrack, because that's what I listened to as I wrote it. Also, for those of you requesting that I get a Beta, you're welcome to volunteer. I know I need one, and you know I need one, so if you've got the time, I'll gladly take the help. Otherwise, point out the mistakes that bug you and I'll correct them. I'm doing the best I can, and as I said before, this is technically the rough draft of this story. Anyway- Enjoy. And don't forget to feed me:) Oh, and RangersRomance? This is it winkwink._

"_Cameron." The gentle whisper floated across his mind. Those eyes were there, but this time he wasn't afraid of them. He watched them as they watched him, floating around him in a comforting way. He closed his eyes to let the feeling wash over him, unsure how he could be so comforted by something he didn't understand. _

_When he opened his eyes he was somewhere else entirely. He knew that he should know where he was, but somehow he couldn't place it. He glanced over the grassy landscape before him until he found the kids. _

_A raven haired little boy with glasses and a button down polo. A sandy haired boy with a t-shirt and unlaced tennis shoes. Playing together in the same sandbox, and yet ignoring each other completely. _

_Until Hunter reached out for his shovel without any regards to Cam. _

"_Give that back please." Cam asked as politely as he could. _

"_I'm just gonna borrow it." Hunter insisted as he stole it. _

_Young innocent Cam got upset, and reached over to take the shovel back from young annoying Hunter. _

_And their fingers brushed. The first time they ever touched. The light flowed out around them, enveloping them in a protective bubble. Things slowed down as Cam watched his younger self panic and call out for his mother. Hunter did the same. The light was still swirling around them, calmly, protectively, peacefully. No brilliant flash, no roaring in their ears, no jolt of energy. Just light. _

_Cam saw them come running from opposite directions. Two women, coming to protect their sons. _

_He stared at his mother as she stopped outside the bubble of light. She was beautiful. She was wearing a long, flowing, green summer dress, and her hair was gently pulled back into a half ponytail. Something gold dangled around her neck and caught the light, making him blink. _

_Hunter's mother was standing on Hunter's side. Her curly hair was bouncing in the wind, and she held a hand up to try and block the light from her eyes. She was wearing jeans and a blue halter top, with a pair of heals. A silver pendant hung around her neck, glittering in the light. _

_As the two woman came to a stand still the orb of light vanished and the boys were both standing facing each other. Their mothers rushed to their sides, both reacting very differently to the situation. _

_Hunter's mother hugged him and asked if he was all right. Cam's mother checked him over, and then asked what she had told him about using ninja powers in public. _

_It was like watching a far off memory play out before his eyes. He could see what was going on, but he was frozen to the spot unable to interact, as if his mind was trying to show him something. _

_As both young Cam and young Hunter told their mothers they didn't know what had happened, the two women finally looked up and caught each others eye. Both stood to address one another, Hunter's mother lifting him up and balancing him on her hip, and Cam's mother taking his hand and standing by his side. _

"_I'm Casey Bradley." Hunter's mother offered her hand, and Miko smiled gently. _

"_Miko Watanabe." She reached out to take Casey's hand, but before they got there Cam was tossed backwards. _

_He couldn't see the park anymore, couldn't see much of anything. He was falling backwards, which should have been a very unpleasant feeling, but he wasn't afraid. Something was holding onto his hand, making sure he wouldn't fall. _

"_Cameron." His mother's voice. It was his mother's voice that had been calling out to him. _

"_Hunter!" Casey Bradley's voice screamed through his mind and he stopped falling. _

There was no violent jolting awake this time. He wasn't even sure when the dream ended and when he woke up. His eyes just fluttered open as sleep released him, and he found himself staring at Hunter. Their hands were still joined between them.

Cam blinked a bit and pushed himself up, careful not to disturb Hunter. He rubbed his eyes with his free hand, for some reason not wanting to let go of Hunter. And then he remembered the dream.

It was been so strange. Yet it felt so real. Had he and Hunter really met so long ago? Had that been when all of this had started? What had their mothers known that they didn't? Hunter stirred a little under Cam's gaze, but he didn't wake up. Cam couldn't believe they'd slept out here, hunched over on his computer desk like that. He didn't understand how he didn't have a kink in his neck.

Actually, he felt better than he had in days. That had been the best sleep he'd gotten since… since as long as he could remember, actually.

Yeah, he needed coffee. He was making weird accusations in his head that just weren't plausible. Because what would be different about sleeping next to Hunter?

Hunter's hand had been what had kept him from falling, he realized as he glanced at their laced fingers. He hadn't been afraid because he was holding Hunter's hand.

As Cam looked back to Hunter's face, he was struck with the sudden urge to kiss him. He wasn't immediately appalled with himself, either. He actually considered bending down over Hunter's sleeping body and pressing a kiss to his temple. He couldn't actually bring himself to do it, but the thought was sweetly comforting.

Hunter's eyes finally opened, and he didn't seem to see anything but their hands at first. It took him a moment to realize where he was, and then he looked up at Cam without sitting up.

"That was one helluva dream." Hunter told him wryly.

Cam didn't have to ask to know they'd had to same dream. "It felt more like a memory to me."

"Until the eyes and the weird falling part." Hunter agreed. He sat up carefully, but their joined hands remained on the desk. "Time is it?"

Cam glanced over at his computer. He brought up the clock by hitting one key, and he sniggered to himself. "You're going to be in trouble."

"Why?" Hunter wanted to know. He wasn't looking at the screen.

"Cause I'm sure Blake's realized your gone by now." Cam told him. "It's almost 8."

"Great." Hunter mumbled, rubbing his face. "Can I blame you?"

"No." Cam answered immediately. "I'll deny everything."

"You would, too." Hunter agreed cheerfully. "I guess I'd better get home. Maybe I can convince him I just went for a walk."

"Luck with that." Cam grinned. Hunter gave his hand a squeeze and then went to stand.

Or at least, that's what Cam thought he was doing. He didn't realize what was happening until it was too late. Hunter pressed his lips to Cams in a very gentle, chaste kiss and then pulled away quickly, dropped Cam's hand and headed for the door.

He was gone before Cam could even react. He'd have to hit him for that later. Cam reached up with the hand that had been holding Hunter's to touch his lips. It was a strangely romantic gesture, and when he realized this he dropped his hand and glanced back at the doorway.

It was a strange mix of feelings. He felt warm and happy because Hunter had kissed him. He knew that shouldn't make him feel that way, but he couldn't help the warmth that washed over him because of it.

And yet, with the absence of Hunter's presence, Cam felt a hole inside himself begin to grow. Hunter hadn't even been gone 10 minutes, and already Cam missed him.

That warmth in his lips and the ache in his heart fought with his mind. He didn't know what to think about Hunter anymore.

* * *

At training that day Cam tried to avoid Hunter. His father made them run some laps, do some team exercises, and then he was back to elemental combination. 

Cam was worried. He was fine with Tori, and he even managed to hold steady with Shane for a few seconds. Blake was on top of his game today, making an easy combination with Dustin and a bit more difficult one with Tori. Cam was working his way around Hunter, avoiding him at all costs.

He didn't know what would happen when his father asked them to work together. Would there be another strange flash of light? He would like to think they were in control of whatever was happening between them now, but they still had no idea what they could do. Cam was partly curious to find out just how far their newfound powers would go, and at the same time he was cautious to even imagine what could happen if they pushed their limits.

Still, it seemed inevitable that eventually he'd have to work with Hunter. He found himself standing opposite Hunter far too soon for comfort, and he took a deep breath. Hunter was looking at him.

_Whenever you're ready._ Hunter's voice passed through his mind. Cam held up his Bokken in answer.

Hunter took a step forward, and slowly he raised his hands. Lightning shot all around him, but Cam found it easier to control than anything else. Unlike last time, when he could barely think straight for fear of getting hurt, this time he was totally aware of what was going on and completely calm.

It probably had something to do with the fact that he knew what Hunter was going to do before he did it.

So, being inside Hunter's head was good for something after all.

Being able to sense Hunter's presence and read his thoughts certainly made rangering easier. They could communicate without really thinking about it, could work together like they were one whole person, instead of two separate ones.

Before he knew it they had successfully combined. They were surrounded by a perfectly symmetrical sphere of lightning, floating some 10 feet off the ground.

When they came down to land, his father called them over.

"I was very surprised, as you might have guessed, to see the two of you working so well together so suddenly. I am not sure how this has come about, but I am very pleased to see you have put your differences aside for the good of the team." His father spoke proudly. Cam tried to listen to his father over Hunter's sniggering in his thoughts.

_Oh, if only he knew the half of it…_ Hunter chuckled in his mind. Cam fought a grin.

"I hope such cooperation will continue in the future, from all of the rangers. You are dismissed for today." Sensei bowed, and they all bowed respectively in return.

"Way to go, you guys." Tori commended as Sensei walked away.

_Yeah, way to go Cam. _Hunter smirked smugly.

_Is it possible for you to not do that while we're talking to other people? _Cam thought irritably.

_Probably, but it's funner this way._ Hunter told him.

_Funner isn't a word._ Cam chided out of habit.

_It should be._ Hunter countered.

"Cam?" Tori's voice cut into his idle banter with Hunter, and he realized he'd completely missed whatever she had just asked.

"Sorry?" He glanced over at her apologetically.

Tori smiled sympathetically. "Still kind of out of it, huh?"

"I guess." Cam nodded.

"Hey, if you guys keep that up, Sensei might let us off training early all the time!" Dustin interjected.

"Dude, there's about as much chance of that as there is of… well…" Shane trailed off.

"What was that?" Tori asked with a grin.

"I was trying to think of something weird that hasn't happened to us. Came up short." Shane shrugged goofily. Tori grinned, Dustin laughed, and Hunter rolled his eyes.

"So, then, a more appropriate statement would be about as much chance of something weird _not_ happening to us." Hunter chuckled with their friends.

He was staring. He realized it a second before Hunter did, and he looked away abruptly. Great. Cause, you know, Hunter needed an ego boost.

_Actually I kind of like it when you stare._ Hunter's voice came through his head, and he found himself blushing inexplicably.

_Right, well._ Cam thought, crossing his arms uncomfortably. _Add that to the list of things I won't be doing._

Hunter grinned abruptly, and Cam couldn't tell if it was to what he had said or the joke Blake had just made.

* * *

It was strange. For some reason, Cam couldn't stop thinking about all the important things in his free time. He was constantly wondering about the strange jolts of energy, the healing through open wounds, the sharing of their thoughts, the kissing, and the strange dream he and Hunter shared. When he was with Hunter though… 

He just couldn't bring himself to focus on any of that. He found himself talking about trivial things instead of asking aloud the questions he kept asking in his mind. It was as if all of that wasn't important when he was with Hunter. It was like Hunter already knew what he wanted to ask, so he just figured he didn't have to.

It was actually a bit annoying. But then, Cam was annoyed with just about everything these days. Mostly his lack of ability to figure out what exactly _was_ going on.

It had been two days since that night in Ninja Ops. He hadn't dreamed anything since then. Training had actually gotten easier. He hadn't found anything new about their situation. But he had spent time with Hunter.

All in all, it was probably the most unproductive he had ever been.

Blake had let Hunter off house arrest, but only after Hunter had promised he wouldn't go anywhere without telling Blake. Something about Hunters accident had seriously spooked the younger Bradley, and he was keeping a close watch on his brother.

Hunter was a bit annoyed with it all. He was spending more time with Cam, and Cam sure hoped the others weren't wondering why they were spending so much time together. The last thing he wanted to do was explain it to any of them. Least of all Blake.

Cam was feeling more and more relaxed around Hunter. He found himself struck with impulses he couldn't explain, but he didn't act on them. He wanted to reach out and touch Hunter's face when he was close. He wanted to hold him in his arms. He wanted to kiss him. He didn't understand any of it.

If he was honest with himself, being attracted to Hunter Bradley really wasn't all that bad. He could do a lot worse than Hunter. But there was just something about him that didn't compute in Cam's mind. He couldn't justify Hunter, and that was what kept him from acting on his impulses.

Which was getting harder all the time.

On the third day of this, Cam realized how behind his system maintenance was getting. It wasn't behind on normal standards, but compared to the way he usually kept it, behind was an understatement. He supposed he didn't really need to spend as much time with his computer as he did, but it had become habit, and old habits died hard.

Stubbornly, Cam made himself a cup of coffee and sat down to get some work done. He started going over system files and repairing things he'd left unfinished or things that had malfunctioned. He hadn't even been working 10 minutes when he felt Hunter's presence.

Cam sighed, waiting only as long as it took Hunter to walk down the steps to speak. "Do you have some kind of radar that tells you when I'm trying to get work done?"

He heard Hunter laugh. "Yes. And it goes off way too often." Hunter declared happily.

Cam rolled his eyes, knowing Hunter would feel his annoyance even if he couldn't see it.

"See, I'd leave if you really wanted me to, but seeing as you don't…" Hunter left he sentence open as he walked forward.

"No, you wouldn't." Cam countered. "You'd stay and be a pest no matter what I wanted."

"Mmmm. True." Hunter agreed easily. He stopped just behind Cam's chair, leaning over his shoulder to look at the screen. "Whatcha doing?"

"Work." Cam answered shortly. He figured Hunter couldn't make heads or tales of what he was doing anyway, so he didn't see a need to explain it.

"Obviously." Hunter sounded amused. "Let's take a break."

"I just started." Cam objected, but Hunter held up a hand to silence him.

"I don't want to hear it. We're going. End of story." Hunter told him firmly. Cam frowned.

"Going where?" He was disgusted that he agreed so easily instead of fighting it. He seemed to be doing that more and more these days.

"I don't know. Out. See the city. Have some fun." Hunter paused, giving him a calculating look. "You do know what _fun_ is, right?"

"Funny." Cam answered easily. "I really shouldn't-"

"Let me guess." He interrupted again. Cam thought he should find that very annoying. "You're one of those guys who's lived in Blue Bay Harbor his entire life, and has never seen the sights."

Cam shrugged. "Blue Bay Harbor doesn't have any sights."

Hunter gave him a knowing look. "Thought so." Hunter reached out to grab his arm.

The jolt of energy was ever present, and they both took a sharp intake of breath and let out a long sigh. Cam enjoyed the momentary feeling and the warmth it provoked as it faded. He caught Hunter's eye, and Hunter grinned. Cam had to admit he felt better too, but he always did whenever Hunter touched him.

See, that was one of those things he thought they should discuss. But sitting there in Hunter's presence, he just couldn't get the words out.

"Come on." Hunter yanked on his arm impatiently.

"Why?" Cam asked.

"Because I said so." Hunter smiled, and then his look turned to subtle warning. "I will drag you out of here, with or without your permission."

Cam knew he would, too. So he turned back to his computer, set it on lock and allowed himself to be hauled out of Ninja Ops by one determined blond Ninja.


	8. Time Stops

_AN: Mwahaha! I'm Baaack! Firstly, I am SO sorry this has taken so long. You have no idea how badly I wanted to write this but couldn't. I hope I haven't lost you all! Come back! I owe this chapter mostly to Amanda, for giving me the push I needed to get re-motivated. That girl really is something. I also owe it to Sara, who got me the Becoming Jane soundtrack, which I listened to the whole time I wrote this. Hint. Also, there's probably typo's. Have you got any idea how late it is? But you don't care about that! Hell, you've probably stopped reading this and gone to the story by now. I don't blame you! Get to it! And PLEASE! If you have any trace of a heart in your body, Leave. A. Review._

Ice cream seemed to be one of Hunter's favorite things. Cam had a feeling he'd be seeing a lot more of it in the coming months.

It was thoughts like that that worried him. He was actually starting to get used to the bond, to the point where he was thinking about Hunter in the long term. He was still fully intent on finding a way to dissolve it, but there was a part of him that couldn't help thinking he'd miss it when it was gone.

Hunter handed him his ice cream cone with a grin, and without a spoken word they began walking down the street.

"Where are we going?" Cam wondered as he took a cautious lick of his ice cream. It was cold. Coffee flavored, but cold. Cam just didn't like the idea of cold coffee. Maybe he should have gone with the caramel.

"It's a surprise." Hunter told him as he munched happily on his strawberry banana ice cream.

"You don't know where we're going." Cam told him as he searched the thunders thoughts.

"I do too. And I thought we agreed not to do that." Hunter looked over at him with a glare.

"That hasn't stopped you." Cam told him with raised eyebrows.

Hunter grinned. _Point well taken._

Cam looked away. _Don't start._ He warned.

He heard Hunter chuckle. "Do you have any idea how cool this is?" Hunter asked.

"What?" Cam asked, bemused.

_This._ Hunter told him in his mind, making it clear what he was talking about. _This is really cool. _

_And slightly disturbing. If that's your idea of cool, then okay. But it isn't mine._ Cam told him stubbornly.

_And what is?_ Hunter wanted to know. His voice had gone from convincing to curious very quickly, and Cam thought that he was able to pick up the changes in Hunter's tone a lot easier in his mind.

"Normal. Normal is cool." Cam spoke aloud deliberately, taking another bite of his ice cream as he finished.

"Being normal is vastly overrated." Hunter declared. "Why would you of all people want to be normal? I thought all you wanted was to be a ninja."

"I did. I do. I am a ninja. And that's all well and good. But if my entire family for generations before me hadn't been ninja's, I wouldn't want to be one." Cam frowned, trying not to sigh.

"You wouldn't need to be one." Hunter's voice was puzzled, but he didn't ask it as a question.

Cam looked over at him sharply. "What?"

"I heard you. You said you wouldn't need to be a ninja." Hunter repeated firmly.

Cam had thought that. He hadn't said it aloud though, and he still wasn't used to having someone be able to see through what he said and hear what he meant. It was both comforting and unnerving.

Hunter was waiting and staring at him expectantly.

"I wouldn't need to be a ninja." Cam confirmed with a sigh.

"Okay, let me see if I have this." Hunter brought a hand up to his forehead and then dropped it quickly. "You want to be normal. But you think you need to be a ninja because your entire family was before you. And yet it was your family that wouldn't let you be a ninja. So, do you want to be normal, or do you want your entire family to be normal?"

Cam sighed, unsure why he'd brought this up in the first place. "I just want a normal life. Normal by my definition, which means no ninja's, no freaky relatives out to get me, and no weird connections with people I-" He stopped talking, but the thought had formed and he knew Hunter had heard it.

"Can't stand?" Hunter finished with a smirk.

"Yeah." Cam agreed reluctantly.

"I guess we all want things we can't have, then." Hunter mused gently. Cam rolled his eyes.

"That isn't going to get me to kiss you." He informed Hunter calmly.

Hunter grinned. "Who says that's what I want?"

Cam glared over at him. Hunter returned his stare with one of mock innocence.

"And even if it was." Hunter looked away bashfully. "I can get inside your head anytime I want, so. I would hardly need to use crummy lines like that."

Cam rolled his eyes. "Right. Whatever you say, Hunter."

Hunter just grinned as they continued walking down the street. Cam regarded his ice cream with distaste, knowing he should eat it now that he had it and really not wanting to.

Before he could take another bite, Hunter reached over and took it from him.

"Oh, for crying out loud." Hunter sighed dramatically as he gave Cam his ice cream. "Have this one, then."

Cam couldn't help but smile. "It's half gone, now."

"Yeah, well, you should have picked a flavor you actually wanted." Hunter countered, taking a large bite out of Cam's coffee ice cream.

Cam wrinkled his nose. "It's got your germs all over it."

Hunter rolled his eyes. "Well, so does this one now." Cam shook his head. "And, just so you know, saliva from someone you kiss stays in your mouth for 2 weeks. So. There goes that argument."

Cam looked away quickly, ignoring both Hunter and the heat in his cheeks.

"You're melting." Hunter informed him.

Cam glared over at him in response.

"You're ice cream. Mine. Whatever. Melting." Hunter nodded at Cam's hand, and begrudgingly he took a bite of the ice cream.

It was much better than the flavor he had chosen, but Hunter was never going to know that.

The smirk on his face told him he already did.

* * *

"I think you just woke up today and said 'Let's see how much I can annoy Cam before he hurts me'." Cam mused as Hunter and he walked towards the park. 

"You need more sunlight. That's why you're so grouchy all the time. Proven fact." Hunter countered.

Cam rolled his eyes. "Where do you get this stuff?"

"The Big Book of Random Facts." Hunter answered immediately, and Cam wondered if that was actually a book.

Cam shook his head and looked around. "Where are we, again?"

"There's just something you've got to see. Even you can appreciate something like this." Hunter told him matter-of-factly.

Cam couldn't decide whether to be complimented or offended.

They walked past the small park and into an alley way, and Cam was seriously beginning to wonder where they were going. He kept his mouth shut and followed Hunter anyway, hoping his newfound trust in the blond ranger wasn't misplaced.

Hunter led him down the alleyway to the other side, where they were facing an elaborately painted brick wall.

"This is quite possibly the most impressive thing to see in Blue Bay Harbor." Hunter declared. Cam looked over the wall skeptically, and tried his hardest to keep his thought private. "Okay, all I heard was 'is he kidding', but I know there was more."

Cam rolled his eyes. "What is this, anyway?"

"It's a mural. Jees, they call you the smart one?" Hunter quipped. Cam shot him a look that Hunter all but ignored, and he started pointing things out. "Just look at it, would you? Some of the most impressive artists in the state of California come here to leave their mark."

Cam raised an eyebrow and tried to keep the sarcastic note out of his voice when he said "It looks like graffiti."

Hunter sighed dramatically. "That's what it is."

"You dragged me all the way out here to show me a wall of graffiti?" Cam demanded, hands on hips. He was suddenly indignant, and he felt a familiar flash a rage spike somewhere in his body.

"Oh, simmer down." Hunter snapped. "Look at it, Cam. Yeah, it's a wall of graffiti. But it _means_ something."

Cam paused, looking at the wall again. It hadn't changed.

"It's something hundreds of people have collaborated on, added to, and created together. Yeah, some of it's weird. And some of it's random. But it's the work of a bunch of different people, all trying to bring something different into the world. And that's what makes it beautiful." Hunter's voice was soft and thoughtful, and Cam turned to face him.

Cam studied Hunter's profile longer than he studied the graffiti mural. Hunter was smirking on the side of his face that Cam could study. His eyes were focused in front of him on the mural, and there was no sun on his hair for once so it wasn't quite as blindingly blond as it usually was. Finally, Hunter shut his eyes and Cam heard the thought echo across his head.

_What? _

Hunter turned to him, and Cam grinned a little. "That was really very insightful."

The corners of Hunter's mouth turned up. "Cool."

"Yeah." Cam agreed. "Cool."

* * *

They lay on the grass outside Ninja Ops in the dimming sunlight, watching the stars emerge into the darkening sky. 

"You know, I think this is the first day I can remember in a long time where I haven't been in Ninja Ops." Cam mused with a chuckle, and he felt Hunter shake his head.

"That's _pathetic_." Hunter teased. "I'm going to have to make a habit of this."

"A little warning would be nice, next time." Cam offered with a smirk.

"What, so you can avoid me?" Hunter scoffed. "I think not."

"It was worth a shot." Cam sighed. He really wasn't as put out as he pretended to be, but he thought that Hunter almost enjoyed being the guy who got to annoy Cam and get away with it, so Cam played along.

Number forty two on the List of Weird Things That Had Happened To Him Since He Met Hunter: He was doing nice things for Hunter. And not because he felt bad for him, or because someone else told him to. Because he wanted to.

At his point, Cam didn't even feel the need to roll his eyes at the ludicrousness that very thought implied.

"You know what I love about the stars?" Hunter asked quietly. He sounded tired.

"What's that?" Of course, Cam didn't exactly sound awake, either.

"There's so sparkly." Hunter practically giggled, and Cam couldn't help himself.

Laughing, he barely managed to get out his question. "Are you high?"

Hunter continued to chuckle away, but he never actually answered Cam's question.

"Really, though." Hunter mumbled after a long, gentle silence. "They're very comforting to me. When I was little, I was terrified of the dark. And-"

"Only when you were little?" Cam interrupted sarcastically.

"Shush you." Hunter scolded. Cam could hear the smile in his voice, so the reprimand had little effect. "Anyway, my parents painted my whole bedroom ceiling with glow in the dark stars. It was the first nice thing anyone had ever done for me. I'd always look at the ceiling while I was falling asleep and imagine I was outside, like right now, and I wouldn't be afraid anymore."

Cam looked over at Hunter as he stared happily up at the stars, studying his profile for the second time that day. Other side of it this time, though.

"You're doing that thing again." Hunter observed. He didn't seem annoyed in the least, but a little bit amused.

"What _thing_?" Cam had a feeling he wasn't going to like what Hunter said.

"The one where you look at me like I've just explained the nature of the universe." Hunter teased, turning his head to look back over at Cam. "Which, for you, is a very admiring and endearing and… _flattering_ look."

Cam tried his very hardest not to blush, knowing Hunter would _feel_ it rather than _see_ it and god was the ever annoying at times like these. Even in the semi darkness of twilight he couldn't fool Hunter.

He turned his head away, fighting the smile that threatened to rise up to his lips. He felt Hunter do the same a moment later, and he was a little relieved. Until Hunter's ghostlike voice whispered across his mind.

_Nerd_, Hunter accused. _Who else would get so flustered at that?_

Cam reached over and promptly whacked Hunter in the stomach. The startled 'oof' and the relieved laugh were a slight consolation to his flaming cheeks.

They were silent for some time after that, and Cam began to wonder if Hunter had fallen asleep. It was getting colder, and he wondered if he should wake him and part ways for the night. The thought made his heart ache, and he tried to ignore it. He'd spent the entire day with this obnoxious oaf, and still… he could hardly bare the thought of being separated from him.

"I heard that." Hunter told him indignantly. "How dare you call me an oaf?"

Cam grinned. "You've been called worse."

Hunter sounded scandalized. "By who!"

"My memory fails me." Cam sniggered. In all honestly, most of the name calling had probably been done by him.

"Let whoever it is know that when I find them, justice will be swift and unmerciful." Hunter warned playfully.

Cam rolled his eyes. "I'll be sure to remember that."

"I don't want to go, either." Hunter sighed heavily, and before Cam could scold him for reading his thought he continued. "Tell me something I don't know about you."

Cam paused, caught off guard, and he shook his head. "I don't think there _is_ anything you don't know about me anymore."

Hunter turned his head to look at him, and Cam found himself looking back. "Freaky."

Cam smirked. "Tell me about it."

"Wanna know what's funny?" Hunter didn't wait for his response this time. "You still continue to surprise me."

"The feeling's mutual." Cam assured. Hunter grinned slightly, but he look faded and while he didn't turn his head away, he averted his eyes uncomfortably. Cam tried to read his thoughts, but he was tired and they were far too jumbled.

"Can I ask you something personal?" Hunter whispered. The sound was loud in the encroaching darkness, and the tone of his voice made Cam hesitate.

After a moment, Hunter's eyes came back up to meet his, and he found he couldn't refuse. "Sure."

"Do you forgive your mother?"

Cam knew he should be offended by that question. Of course he forgave his mother! What was there to forgive? And yet, looking at Hunter there, he knew he wasn't offended because it was a perfectly reasonable question and he didn't really know the answer. His mother had died when he was 8 years old. He missed her terribly, but it hadn't been her fault. She'd done everything she could to stay with them, but in the end she'd given up. And yeah, maybe that made him a little angry. Because he'd needed her, and that scared him.

Sighing, he met Hunter's gaze. "Sometimes."

Hunter nodded, and turned his head back towards the stars.

"And you?" Cam was curious, and Hunter owed it to him to answer.

Hunter was quiet for a moment, and the corner of his mouth turned up as he turned his head back towards Cams. "Sometimes." He echoed gently.

He saw movement out of the corner of his eye, and his gaze flickered to Hunter's raised hand. Palm facing them, fingers spread… an open invitation that he fully expected Cam to take. It was an offer of support, of friendship, that asked nothing in return. Hunter offered only what he had, unsure if he would get anything back, but he offered all the same.

It was foolish. That's what Cam thought about Hunter. He wasn't afraid to be hurt, and that was foolish. If he was afraid he didn't show it. Catching Hunter's eye again, Cam reached out and took his hand. He placed their palms flat against one another, and then Hunter laced their fingers without any effort.

Yeah, Hunter was foolish. But that was what made him so interesting. He loved without fear, and that was something Cam desperately wished he could do. Maybe even with Hunter.

Hunter brought their hands down in-between their heads, and he gave Cam a reassuring squeeze.

There was a hole inside each of them, and even now Cam could feel it. He knew Hunter felt it too. Sometimes it felt like Hunter could fill that hole, and in that moment Cam desperately wanted to let him try. But if he kissed him now it would ruin the day they'd shared, the moment between them, the connection. He knew that, and yet still he wanted it.

Glancing at Hunter, he could tell the thunder ninja's thoughts were in much of the same place as his own. Hunter was staring wistfully at Cam's lips.

_I want to kiss you_, he heard Hunter whisper.

_I know_, Cam answered. It wasn't exactly an invitation, but it wasn't an objection either.

_I think kissing you and having you push me away,_ Hunter thought sadly, _might be worse than not kissing you at all._

Cam closed his eyes. _I know._

"Could you say something other I know?" Hunter asked aloud, and Cam opened his eyes at the harsh tone. "You don't know everything, Cam."

Cam bit his lip. _If I say I know, you're going to hurt me._

Hunter closed his eyes and sighed, but the corners of his lips turned up. His nice, round, pink, soft lips. _I thought you didn't like talking like this._

_I might have exaggerated._ Cam quipped. _Don't hold me to that._

_I'm learning to take everything you say with a grain of salt._ Hunter teased gently. He was moving. Cam saw it and couldn't help but tense with anticipation.

Hunter's lips were closer, and Cam was holding his breath. He wasn't even sure when Hunter had moved their hands, but he knew they were still firmly clasped. Hunter was moving much too slowly, and Cam began to panic. He couldn't help it. He knew this was wrong, and he knew wanting it so much it hurt was wrong.

He wanted to kick himself for having common sense. There was nothing he wanted more in the world right now than to have Hunter's lips on his own. And still, he could not give in so easily.

Just a moment before their lips would have met, Cam rolled away and out of Hunter's range. He heard Hunter let out a furious groan that sent chills down his spine.

"I'm sorry." Cam began to apologize. He didn't even look back at Hunter. "I just can't. Don't ask me why, I just… can't." He stood and started walking away as quickly as he could.

He heard Hunter call out to him, but he didn't stop, didn't even look back. He couldn't, because he knew if he did he'd be running back there into Hunter's arms.

He had no control. He couldn't control his desires, and they were beginning to get the better of him. He couldn't control his thoughts, or his urges. He couldn't even control his life these days. It was completely out of his hands. And he desperately wanted that control. He _needed_ to know he could control _something_.

So he headed for the one place he could prove to himself he could control his thoughts; the reflecting pool. It was the only place he knew to go at a moment like this, the only place he might be able to find the tiniest ounce of control.

Control. He had to control his life and stop it from going any further downhill. That was all there was to it.


	9. Sparks Fly

_AN: So, some of you may recognize quite a bit of this chapter, and there's a good reason for that. It's a highly revised version of my one-shot story "As Good As Now". I wrote AGAN back when I was first getting the idea for this story, and back then it was perfect. However, that was a few years ago now, and as the story changed AGAN fit into it less and less. Still, I wanted to keep some parts of it in here, so I took it and completely revamped it to fit into the story once more. Funny, isn't it, how things just have a way of working themselves back together? I'm pretty happy with it, and I hope you are too!_

He sat in front of the reflecting pool and focused on his breathing, controlling each and every movement. He felt the air fill up his body and he felt it release. He tried to envision it flowing through every muscle and limb, invigorating him and lifting him up. It was an exercise he'd known for as long as he could remember, and it was practically second nature.

But it wasn't control.

The second he realized it he was blinking back tears. He could no more control his breathing than he could the moon and the sun. Breathing was an instinct, and without it he would die. It didn't matter how he _controlled_ the breath going in and out of him. He wasn't really in control at all.

In a frustrated rage he tried to hold his breath, to prove something he couldn't prove. He felt like a child, holding his breath to get what he wanted. Eventually, the need to breath overcame him, and he let it out in an angry whimper. He smashed his hand into the ground beside him and bowed his head.

He had no control.

Furious, enraged and defeated, Cam threw himself back from the reflecting pool with all his force and then dragged himself the rest of the way to the encircling trees. He pulled his knees up to his chest and glared hatefully at the calm, tranquil pool.

"Can I join you?"

The voice startled Cam and he jumped, looking up at the intruder at the edge of the clearing. Through the darkness he could make out the blonde hair. The crimson shirt was dulled in the moonlight. There was no doubt that the voice belonged to Hunter.

Cam didn't need to see to know that.

Cam didn't dare look at his face, far too embarrassed. He was too afraid the Crimson ranger would look at him the same way he had only moments ago. It occurred to him that Hunter might have been watching him this whole time, but he didn't care to ask.

_I'm not gay._

Watching Hunter standing there, he couldn't keep the thought out of his mind. He knew it was the truth, but it was as much a lie as far as he could understand right now. He rubbed his forehead halfheartedly, and then dropped his hand.

He glanced around the empty clearing, staring at the pool not 10 feet away. He'd never felt so empty. He couldn't explain it. All he really knew was that when he was with Hunter, and just him, he felt better. He didn't know how else to describe it. He just felt better. He needed to feel better now. And maybe if he could capture that feeling for an hour or two more, it was worth the risk of speaking.

"Sure. Pull up a tree." He said quietly, his voice breaking into the silence they shared so easily.

Hunter took a few small steps toward him and sat down next to him. Their shoulders were barely touching, and already Cam felt calmer. Which didn't make any sense! It was horribly frustrating, but Cam couldn't bring himself to be anything but calm in Hunter's subdued presence. They sat in the silence, and Cam sensed that Hunter was enjoying the calm that washed over them when they touched as much as he was.

Now it was calm. Most of the time it was fire. It had almost been fire only moments before. He was sorely reminded of the few days prior, in the storage shed, and after. The feel of Hunter's hand on the back of his neck, the tension of their bodies pressed together, their hands entwined, Hunters breath on his neck… it sent a shiver down his spine.

"Cam?" Hunter's tentative voice broke his thoughts again, and Cam looked over at him. "Look…" he paused for a minute, maybe trying to think of what to say, maybe hoping Cam would stop him.

He didn't.

"I didn't mean to… pressure you. I just… I don't know what's happening here any more than you do. But I'm really sorry. We can just forget about, if it'll make you feel better." He looked at him imploringly, and Cam sighed angrily.

"I can't just forget about it, Hunter. I _wish_ I could, but I can't. I just…" Cam trailed off, unsure what else he wanted to say.

"Can't. I know." Hunter sighed, drawing his legs up to himself the same way Cam had. "Even if we break this bond, Cam, what's gonna happen? Are we just gonna go back to being friends, the way we were before all this happened?"

"We were never friends." Cam tried not to sound hurtful, but he felt Hunter's uncomfortable anger. It faded, but the trace it left made Cam frown.

"At least we could be in a room together." Hunter said gently, starring at his fidgeting hands.

Cam looked at him. The moon made the curves of his face stand out more than usual, and it reflected off his blonde hair brightly, making it silver in color. Cam couldn't remember them ever exchanging more than what they needed to say. Their friendship had started with Hunter taking him captive and kidnapping his father. After that, the road had been bumpy to say the least. Friends was a stretch.

They sighed at the same time, and this brought a grin to Hunters lips, an expression Cam enjoyed much more than his serious expression from moments ago.

"We could be friends. We've just never tried." Hunter mused out loud.

Cam shook his head. "I can't be your friend, Hunter. Not after all of this. It just wouldn't work." His voice was caught in his throat somewhere, and when it came out it was barely above a whisper. Hunter looked over at him, and Cam found he couldn't look him in the eye.

Cam turned away, frustrated and confused and no better than he had been back in the field. He didn't dare show Hunter the look that was probably on his face right now. He kept his gaze focused straight ahead. It was Hunter who broke the silence once more.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what else to say." Hunter sounded distant, his voice littered with regret.

Cam took a deep breath. He wanted so badly to be with Hunter. It didn't make any sense.

"I don't understand." Cam was at a complete loss. "You are one of the strangest things that's ever happened to me. I want so badly to just give in and let all of this feeling take over and I want to kiss you more than I can possibly explain." Cam ran his hands through his hair, raking it back and messing it up and finally he tossed his head back against the tree they were leaned up against and looked at Hunter. "But this isn't real. Everything I know tells me that this can't be real. It's all… this!" Cam held up his palm with the pinkish scar for emphasis. It seemed to twist and writhe in the moonlight, and Cam scowled at it. "This _thing_ between us… none of it's really real. And I just can't let myself give into something that isn't real."

"How do you know it's not real?" Hunter sounded angry, and Cam caught his gaze. "I want to know how you know. Because I've never felt anything more real than this in my entire life, and that's saying a lot. And, who cares if it's just the bond? We don't know why it happened, but it happened. Maybe it's for the best."

Cam blinked at him. "I don't know what I really feel. This bond has me completely confused and twisted around and all I want is…" Cam stopped, sighing heavily.

"Is?" Hunter prodded.

Cam turned to him. "You."

Cam did his best to hold Hunter's gaze as Hunter scrutinized him. It was the longest moment of his life, he was sure. He had no idea what he was going to do next, and he didn't know what he expected Hunter to do.

Finally, Hunter let out a puff of amusement. _So take me. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere._

Cam let out a breathe he didn't realize he'd been holding as Hunter broke their gaze and reached for Cam's hand. Cam watched him intertwine their fingers, the touch sending shivers up through his arm. He longed to feel that all over, to have Hunter hold him and feel complete.

_Maybe you don't need to be in control all the time._ Hunter coaxed. It was about the only thing Hunter could have said at that moment to make Cam want to hurt him, so leave it to Hunter to say it.

If he let go, if he gave up that last ounce of control to Hunter, he might never get it back. And suddenly, in that moment, that he all he wanted to do. He wanted to believe this was real, and that it wasn't all out of his control. He wanted to trust Hunter.

He wanted _Hunter_. And for the very first time since this had all happened, he decided to be okay with that. It was the only thing he could give, and so he did.

"I think I want to kiss you now." Cam whispered.

Hunter looked back to him with a grin, and reached out to cup Cam's face with his hand. Cam waited as Hunter pulled them closer together, and then when they were only a breath away, Cam moved forward and locked their lips together.

At that simple touch, everything twisted and turned and he was upside-down and floating all at the same time. And everything was right with his world.

Hunter's arms encircled him, and they were so close that he could feel Hunter's chest pressing up against his own. Whereas their previous kisses had been hungry and filled with adrenaline, this one was soft and filled with something much deeper. Cam couldn't remember ever wanting to stay in another place as much as he wanted to stay here. And while that scared the crap out of him, knowing that he relied so fully on someone else for his own happiness, it also made him glad he wasn't alone anymore.

He leaned into Hunter, and they fell backwards onto the ground. Their lips never lost contact, though Hunter's grin nearly made him draw back. Had it not been for Hunter's hand caressing his face he might have, but Hunter had no intention of letting him go.

Hunter rolled him over, and Cam gladly let him explore his neck as he lost himself in the feel of the rest of Hunter's body. Hunter drew back only slightly to catch Cam's eye and smirked. _That wasn't so bad, was it?_

Cam searched his face and could find nothing but content. He felt as though a weight had been lifted inside his mind, and for the first time in days he was happy to just stop thinking and close his eyes as Hunter resumed his attack on his neck.

And it felt good, and he let it feel good, and he couldn't believe he'd resisted this for so long. There was no going back now. He was completely and totally lost in Hunter, and that was just the way he wanted it.

It was a while later before Hunter was pulling him up off the ground with a snarky remark that Cam didn't listen to. Hunter was leaning back against the tree, and he pulled Cam to him and they settled there, wrapped in each others arms.

He laid his head down on Hunters shoulder and buried his face in his neck. He felt Hunter heave a happy sigh. He wrapped his arms tightly around Cam's chest and Cam grabbed his hand to lace their fingers. Cam let out a happy breath against Hunters neck, and he felt Hunter lean his head against his own.

They didn't say anything else, but Cam squeezed Hunter's side a little, and Hunter squeezed his arm back. He was totally and utterly content.

He wasn't sure what was going to happen when they would have to move, and right now he didn't care. He would stay right here for the rest of his life if Hunter wanted him to. _If Hunter wanted him to._ He smiled, and closed his eyes at last.

The last thing he felt was Hunter's lips against his cheek, and then he drifted off into nothingness.

* * *

_The round, blue eyes starred back at him, but they weren't the same blue eyes as before. They were different, but he couldn't quite make out how. They changed, molded themselves into something new, and yet something more familiar than before. Even as faded and murky as the images appeared, he'd know his own eyes anywhere. His own brown, almond eyes were staring back at him. _

_But then they weren't his eyes anymore. They were the same brown eyes that had stared down at him from the beginning. And then they were the blue ones that had grown almost as familiar as this recurring dream. _

_He was shot forward, off balance, barely able to breathe. Slammed against what had to be a wall, he fell backwards and was suddenly stopped. Opening his eyes, he saw the sky, and looking around him, he saw a familiar scene of two little boys and their mothers. _

"_I'm Casey Bradley." Hunter's mother offered her hand, and Miko smiled gently. _

"_Miko Watanabe." She reached out to take Casey's hand, and the two women clasped hands. _

"_I don't suppose you know what just happened?" Casey asked as they let go. Cam was fidgeting at Miko's side, and Miko cast a worried glance in his direction. _

"_I'm not sure." Miko admitted, studying the boys. "But one thing I am sure of is that ours boys are very special." _

_Casey smiled. "I've always known that." She was balancing Hunter on her hip, and she shifted him a little. _

_Miko smiled back. "I have to be going," she said gently, but there was a twinkle in her eye. "But I have a feeling we'll meet again." _

_Casey nodded. "I hope so." _

_Miko bowed politely, and then turned to walk away. Casey watched her, and then got a strange look on her face. _

"_Wait!" Casey called. Miko turned with Cam in toe. "Here." Casey set Hunter down and took off her silver necklace and handed it to Miko. "So we don't forget." _

_Miko took the necklace hanging in Casey's hand with a thoughtful look. After a moment, she reached up and took off her own golden charm and handed it to Casey. "So we don't forget." _

_Cam was yanked away form the scene, tossed backwards, surrounded by the familiar eyes. He was no longer afraid of the falling sensation, knowing that the eyes around him were there to protect him, comfort him, keep him safe. Knowing that Hunter would be there to catch him…_

Cam's eyes fluttered open to the sunlight, and he involuntarily shivered. "So we don't forget."

Hunter shifted next to him. "Wha?"

Cam was wide awake and in the process of standing up before Hunter had even opened his eyes. "We need to go."

"Go where?" Hunter was holding out his hand, and Cam reached down to pull him up. "And what, no good morning kiss?"

"I think I've figured it out." Cam said firmly, ignoring Hunter's playfulness.

"What? The bond?" Hunter yawned. "How?"

"Didn't you dream?" Cam asked with a frown.

Hunter nodded. "Of course. I saw our moms, and the things with the necklaces. What does that have to do with it?"

Cam rolled his eyes. "That's the day all of this started. We have to go back to the storage shed; I think I might have an idea how to reverse the bond."

"How did you figure all this out and I'm still clueless?" Hunter wondered idly.

Cam grinned. "I'm the smart one, remember?"

"So they keep telling me." Hunter rolled his eyes, an eerily familiar movement.

"Come on. Let's go." Cam turned, walking towards the logging roads. Hunter didn't follow right away, and Cam glanced over his shoulder at him.

"We may never break this bond, Cam. You might be stuck with me for a long, long time." Hunter warned as Cam strode away from him.

Looking over his shoulder, Cam couldn't say that would be an entirely horrible experience.

* * *

They streaked to the storage shed together knowing that when Cam's dad found out they'd be in trouble, but the only other alternatives were walking or hitchhiking because Hunter's car was still in the shop. Hunter mentioned that Sensei should just be glad to know they hadn't been abducted by Hannibal trying to hitchhike, but Cam thought that would do little to subdue his father.

Still, they had to go back to the storage shed. And while Cam wasn't entirely sure he wanted Hunter in there with him after last time, he really didn't have much choice. After all, he knew what they were looking for, so they weren't going to be in there that long.

He hoped.

Because seriously? He couldn't _stop_ thinking about the last time they'd been in here together. It had been _hot_. And he wasn't sure he'd stop Hunter this time. Not after last night.

He could almost feel Hunter's thoughts going to exactly the same place, and they froze at the threshold.

"Maybe you should wait here." Cam suggested wryly.

Hunter's lips twitched. "What if I promise to keep my hands to myself?"

Cam closed his eyes tightly, fighting the smile that threatened to break.

"Oh, you're sick." Hunter chided.

Cam sniggered, and unable to think of anything else to say he led the way into the storage shed, knowing full well that at this point, anything Hunter did wouldn't be unwelcome.

Questioning his sanity for the hundredth time since Hunter had first kissed him, Cam shook his head and tried to focus.

"If it makes you feel any better," Hunter added quietly, "you're just as sane as I am."

Cam rolled his eyes in Hunters general direction. _Thanks, Hunter. That makes me feel loads better._

_Your welcome!_ Hunter could sound chipper even in his head.

Cam led him over to the box he was looking for. He felt the recognition click in Hunter's mind as Cam opened it and Hunter knelt down beside him.

Hunter's hand came to rest gently on the small of his back and Cam stopped, his heart skipping a beat.

"You know, you keep thinking you don't want me to make a move on you, and yet every time I make the most innocent of gestures I get this pulse in my head that tells me you want more." Hunter's voice was accusing, and Cam shrugged uncomfortably. "And every time you get wierded out like that, it's like this tiny tingle in my throat."

Cam paused, glancing over at Hunter. "You can tell all that?"

"And that's your nerdy little inquisitive side, which feels like a string tugging at me. Tugging me towards you." Hunter paused, making a face. "Which might just mean I have a nerd fetish. Really not sure on that one."

Cam smirked. Hunter was right; each sensation had its own distinct feel. Cam had tried to block them out before, when clearly Hunter had been paying very close attention. It gave him an advantage Cam was eager to catch up on.

"So, what does it feel like when I do this?" Cam reached out and touched Hunter's bare arm, caressing down to the light pink scar that still stood out on Hunter's tanned skin.

"That," Hunter breathed, "feels like… chocolate."

Cam gave him a skeptical look. "Chocolate?"

Hunter nodded gently. "Sweet. And easy. Sultry. And very, very enjoyable."

Deciding to continue to tease, Cam traveled back up Hunter's arm and caressed his neck, fingers gently needing at tense, anxious muscles. "And that?"

"Like sand, when it's digging into your skin and not quite uncomfortable yet." Hunter muttered, rolling his head around to give Cam access.

Cam really liked Hunter's answers. They bordered on romantic, but they were intriguing, and Cam wondered how much he'd missed trying to block all these feelings out. So, box and purpose for their trip to the shed forgotten, he took the opportunity now, while they were quite and calm and gentle to feel and to touch. He kept asking Hunter questions, and each time the answers got more creative.

Cam's fingers through Hunters hair felt like rain in summer; warm and welcome and refreshing. Cam's lips against his neck felt like roses; beautiful and timid. When Cam caressed Hunter's thigh, he moaned gently before telling him it felt like cold fire.

Cam pulled away, wanted to feel but not daring to push.

"Don't," Hunter whispered fervently. _I like this. Can we just… stay here?_

Cam desperately wanted to say yes. He wanted to learn what it felt like when Hunter rubbed his neck. He wanted to know what Hunter's hands felt like on his chest. He wanted to kiss Hunter, and pay attention to just how that made him feel.

It was a learning experience, to say the least. Cam wasn't about to pass it up.

Hunter reached up to cup his face, and Cam melted into the feeling. It was smooth, like silk. He grinned as he found himself giving the same kind of qualities to Hunters touches that Hunter had given to his.

"Your turn." Hunter whispered against his ear. The warmth made Cam shudder. "How does this feel?"

Cam gulped. "Wonderful."

Hunter sniggered, pressing a kiss into Cam's neck. "Not the answer I had in mind, but that'll do."

"Like something's crawling over my skin." Cam frowned, knowing that wasn't the right way to describe it. "Not like an insect, or anything. Like…" Cam couldn't find the words.

_Don't get frustrated_, Hunter advised silently. _Breathe._

Cam did as he was told. He kept his eyes closed and breathed in the smell of Hunter's hair. "Like feathers." Cam amended at last.

He felt Hunter grinning even with his eyes closed. "And when you're happy… it's like a chime in my head." He opened his eyes and Hunter was much closer than he expected him to be.

He tilted his head fondly. "That's what it feels like to you?" Hunter smirked playfully before shrugging. "It feels sort of like… a shift in gravity for me. Like suddenly I'm not stable on my feet. It's only when your really happy or really upset, though."

Cam didn't want to find out what Hunter felt like upset. Not right now, at least. Now was far too good a moment for that. Giving in to Hunter, Cam thought, might have been the best decision he'd make as a ranger.

_I'm flattered_, Hunter teased. Cam's breathe escaped him in a puff of amusement. Hunter's hand was still cupped around his face, and the other drew delicate patterns down his sleeved arm.

"And what does this feel like?" Cam wanted to know, moving in to kiss Hunter. He was stopped by Hunter's fingers over his mouth, and Cam felt a small wave of disappointment.

"Ah, see, this one?" Hunter grinned coyly at him. "This one I already know."

Cam waited, and when Hunter didn't go on he pressed, "Well?"

"This feels like sparks." And Hunter kissed him. Soft and gentle, it had a faint echo of the night before somewhere in it, but it had its own distinctive feel. It wasn't rushed and angry, like many of the kisses they had shared. It was… calm. Assertive, yet tender. Completely and totally satisfying.

And Hunter was right. Cam saw sparks.


	10. Look Into The Air

_AN: So, I've decided this story starts sometime around the events of "Tongue and Cheek" and everything after that is AU. I don't know why it took me so long to figure that out. I'm actually gonna try and keep the timeline pretty stable, but you know how that goes. Feed the author! _

It was the chiming of their morphers that finally caused their lips to break apart. Breathless and flushed and really angry at being interrupted, Cam could only pout as Hunter brought his morpher to the lips that Cam really wanted to keep kissing.

Hunter winked at him. Cam watched his lips move, and damn him if Hunter didn't look good with his lips swollen like that and his face burning as red as his uniform. "Go for Hunter." Cam moved closer and began kissing Hunter's neck again, and he thought he felt Hunter stifle a giggle.

"Hunter, it is good to hear from you." Sensei's voice came over his morpher instead of Cybercam, and Cam frowned into Hunter's neck. "Is Cameron with you, by any chance?"

Hunter nudged him, and Cam bit his neck in return. _Hey!_ Hunter yelped at him. _Are you here? _

_Will it look bad?_ Cam asked halfheartedly.

_Probably._ Hunter said honestly.

Cam sighed. He really didn't have any other option but to answer. "Right here, dad."

"Ah, good." His father sounded indignant. Not to anyone else, but in that way that Cam knew he was upset because it was carefully masked by false relief. "Then you both won't mind helping your teammates fight Lothor before you return to being irresponsible and negligent of your duties as rangers, will you?"

"I dunno," Hunter deadpanned. "Is it urgent?"

Cam promptly smacked him in the stomach, and Hunter let out a startled 'Oaf!' before dissolving into giggles. "Where are they?"

Cam barely heard his father answer as Hunter reached back up to kiss him. Cam really hoped his fathers keen hearing couldn't make out the sound of their lips smacking together, even as gentle as it was.

Hunter was the one who pulled away to answer. "We'll be right there." He cut off the transmission and returned to kissing Cam.

_You, _Cam decided, _are going to be getting me into a lot of trouble._

_Yup,_ Hunter answered cheerfully. Then he pulled away to whisper against Cam's lips. "But don't worry. I'll be getting you out of it, too."

Hunter stood and hauled Cam up before he even knew what was happening. Cam shook his head to clear it -it was startling how foggy it became in Hunters presence- and Hunter grabbed his hand as they headed for the exit.

"Wait!" Cam stopped and yanked his hand away, turned back towards the box.

"What?" Hunter wanted to know. He hadn't moved.

"We have to get what we came for." Cam pulled out the jewelry box Hunter had found a few days prior and opened it. There, in the velvet lining, was the silver necklace from their dreams.

Cam pulled it out, the chain cold against his skin. He held it out to Hunter.

"I think this belongs to you." He told him, and Hunter reached out gingerly to take it from him.

He studied it for a moment before smiling and pulling it on. It hung low on his neck, and Cam reached over and tucked it into his shirt. Hunter caught his hand, and the tiniest jolt of electricity shot through them both.

"All of my mother's things are at my grandmothers. We'll have to go over there once we finish with Lothor, see if we can find yours." He said gently.

"Speaking of Lothor…" Cam admonished, and Hunter let his hand go, nodding. Putting the box back where it was, Cam followed Hunter out the door, where they streaked away to help their friends.

* * *

When they got there, the battle was in full swing. They morphed at the same time, each going off in different directions. Cam made quick work of the Kelzacks, while Hunter joined his brother in fighting some sort of fish monster.

Dustin was battling Marah not far away, and Shane and Tori were taking on Kapri. It shouldn't have been as difficult of a battle as it turned out to be.

He was knocking out the last Kelzack when Hunter sent a warning through his mind and he narrowly dodged a stray energy discharge. He was suddenly very grateful that the person watching his back and the person inside his head were one in the same.

He joined them in attacking the fish monster, whose tentacles sent all of them flying backwards. Kapri and Marah were still occupying the winds, so Cam and the thunders continued their assault on the fish monster.

It wasn't going so bad until Lothor beamed down. He'd never done that before, and it made Cam nervous. Along with his nieces, he started attacking the winds, and they were no match for him. Dustin was down first, and Tori and Shane rushed to help him.

Cam dodged another tentacle and felt the wind get knocked out of him as Hunter and Blake got knocked back down instead. Disadvantage to being inside Hunter's head: Cam felt everything he did. He stumbled as he fought off the attacks of the tentacle wielding fish monster and he ended up on his back, expecting a blow to come down on top of him.

It never did. Hunter came to his rescue just in time, and he forced the fish monster back and hauled Cam to his feet.

_We've got to get better at this whole give and take thing, _Hunter told him, and Cam couldn't help the wry grin that spread across his face under his helmet.

Lothor pulled the fish monster back and the rangers finally had a chance to regroup. It was only a moment, but all six of them together stood a better chance than two groups of three.

It was Kapri who attacked first, going straight for Shane. Tori cut her off with a vicious kick, and the two of them sent her flying backwards. Marah headed for Cam this time, and he fended her off easily. The rest of them handled the fish monster, and Lothor sat back, watching from a far with a quizzical look. Apparently, something didn't make sense to him and he wasn't going to keep attacking until it did. That was just fine with Cam.

It was Blake who dealt the final blow to the fish monster. It collapsed as Blake hefted his Thunder staff and his attached Antler over his shoulder, and he, Hunter and Dustin returned to help the others.

Lothor began firing energy blasts at them all from a far, and they were incredibly hard to deflect and harder to dodge. Hunter forced Marah into the way of one, and she was more than slightly displeased. She disappeared in a puff of purple smoke, and Hunter called out a rambunctious remark that Cam never got the chance to enjoy.

Before he'd even finished tossing the energy blast that had scorched Marah, Lothor had tossed another one at Hunter. He was engulfed in the yellow light, and Cam panicked.

"Hunter!" He called. Lothor was laughing maniacally, his energy blast still going.

_All right,_ Hunter's voice ghosted across his mind. _Not hurt._

Sure enough, when Lothor stopped his blast Hunter stood up, untouched. He made a show of brushing himself off and asked a shocked Lothor, "Is that all you got?"

Lothor fired at him again. This time his aim was slightly off and the rest of the rangers could see Hunter put up his arm to block. The energy went completely around him.

"That's bizarre." Kapri's voice interrupted from behind him, and they all turned to look at her. Tori lunged for her and Kapri screamed, jumping back. "Uncle! Could you maybe try shooting the ones who aren't mysteriously protected from your uber terrific powers?"

Unfortunately for them, Lothor took her advice. Kapri disappeared in a puff of pink smoke and they were left to face Lothor on his own. He was outnumbered now, and he couldn't even touch Hunter.

They had already won.

Lothor continued to fire bolts of energy at them angrily, yelling and shouting with each one. While the rest of the rangers had to dodged and block, Hunter advanced easily. He got right up to Lothor and stopped his energy blasts and the rest of the rangers rushed forward. Cam expected Lothor to retreat at any moment, but he seemed fixated on Hunter and his newly developed ability to be impervious to Lothor's attacks.

He let out a cry of frustration and knocked them all backward with a stomp on the ground. Hunter fell as well, so apparently it was only the energy blasts that couldn't touch him. Standing up beside him, Cam almost didn't register the energy blast coming straight for them.

_Quick, give me your hand!_ Hunter shouted at him.

Cam had a feeling it wasn't going to work that way, but he didn't have enough time to get away. Trusting Hunter blindly, Cam reached out and clasped his hand a second before the blast hit them.

Apparently, it worked that way. The energy went around them like they were shielded, and it gave Hunter time to tell him, _We can do it together. _

Somehow Cam knew exactly what he meant, and they lifted their hands at the same time. A bolt of white energy shot forward from both of them, cutting through Lothor's energy beam and knocking the evil overlord to the ground.

The silence that followed was shocked, and no snappy remarks were made as Lothor rose shakily back to his feet. He gave them a startled look before disappearing entirely.

Cam had seen that look once before. In the past, when Kiya Watanabe had figured out who Cam really was, just before he'd been banished. Whatever had just flickered across Lothor's face, Cam only knew it couldn't be good for them.

They waited, but he never sent the fish monster back for a zord battle.

* * *

"The hell?" Blake was the first to question as they demorphed back at ops.

Hunter shrugged, looking unperturbed.

_Oh, yeah, that's a great strategy,_ Cam chided gently. Hunter just grinned cheekily, and Cam rolled his eyes and headed for his computer.

"I don't know what you did, man, but it was kick ass!" Dustin hooted, clapping Hunter on the shoulder.

"Yeah dude, did you see the look on Lothor's face?" Shane cheered, and Tori laughed right along with them. Blake was the only one who didn't look amused.

"Puzzling, indeed." Sensei's habitat cart came zooming over to them, and his father used Hunter's head to bounce over to Cam's computer. "I suppose your newly acquired ability comes with a good explanation as to why you and Cameron missed training today, without so much as a note?"

Hunter caught Cam's eye, and Cam saw him raise an eyebrow. _Tell him? _

Cam gave him a long look, and tried not to think loudly. He knew they should, knew Hunter wanted to, and he hated lying to his teammates. But it was still Hunter. And he still couldn't bring himself to say it.

_I don't think he'd believe us if we did._ "That's where we were, dad. Tracking down a lead to fight Lothor. It all happened kind of fast, so we didn't really have time to tell anyone."

Sensei looked between the two of them, as though able to tell they weren't telling the truth but unable to prove it.

"Well, whatever you did, can we get some more of it? Cause I'm a little tired of getting my hair singed." Tori put in sourly from the side. Hunter gave her a token grin.

"Tell us, then. What did you find that allowed you to defeat Lothor with such ease?" Sensei inquired. Hunter and Cam shared another quick look.

_How are we going to explain this without telling them everything?_ Hunter wanted to know.

_Be vague?_ Cam suggested, and Hunter rolled his eyes. _No, really. Better vague then crazy._

_Maybe you'd better do the explaining,_ Hunter advised. _Anything I say tends to sound crazy these days. Especially when it involves you. _

"What?" Cam was about to answer when Shane interrupted. When they looked at him he gave them each an expectant look. "You're just looking at each other."

Hunter cleared his throat abruptly. Tugging the necklace out from underneath his training uniform, he held it up for them to see. "I'm not sure, but maybe it has something to do with this?"

The little silver necklace glinted in the dim light, and Cam gulped. Sure enough, Sensei turned to him quizzically.

"Cameron? Would I be mistaken in assuming that necklace once belonged to your mother?" Sensei asked gently. Cam stared his father down evenly, well aware of the intent looks currently directed at them.

"No, dad. That necklace belonged to Hunter's mother." Cam caught Hunter's eye in time to feel the chime of satisfaction in his head. They weren't lying. They just weren't being completely truthful, either.

Sensei looked at him. "I see." He replied in a tone that clearly said he didn't.

"I don't get it." Dustin said suddenly. "Why would your mom's necklace protect you?"

Hunter looked puzzled. "Yeah… haven't quite figured that part out yet." Hunter admitted. "No worries, though. Give Cam the rest of the day, I'm sure he'll have it figured out."

Cam's lips twitched. "Your confidence in me is overwhelming."

Hunter just grinned, and didn't deign to reply.

"So… no chance of getting any more of them, then?" Shane asked cheekily, and Tori swatted at him.

Hunter and Cam shared a look. "One," they said in unison, and everyone instantly looked confused.

Before anyone could say anything, Sensei's stern voice interrupted. "You are all dismissed for the day. I wish to speak with Cameron and Hunter alone." His little guinea pig back was turned on all of them, and Cam felt the chime of worry from Hunter. A knot was growing in his own stomach.

The winds left without a word, giving all of them sympathetic looks as they did so. Blake stood looking at his brother for several seconds, before following the winds out of ninja ops.

Cam and Hunter waited, but Sensei didn't say anything.

_You think he knows?_ Hunter wondered. He sounded hopeful. Cam almost shook his head, but stopped himself just in time.

_I don't know. He seems upset._ Cam braced himself for whatever words would finally come out of his father's mouth, and he could feel Hunter doing the same.

"I don't know exactly what you're playing at," Kanoi Watanabe's voice was startlingly calm. "But be assured, secrets kept from a Ninjetti Master don't remain secrets for long.

"I had wished to believe that your teamwork skills were improving, Cameron. However you have shown me today that both you and Hunter are in need of much more work. You left your teammates 'hanging' today, out in the battlefield and before, during training. I am displeased with your newfound lack of responsibility-"

"All due respect, Sensei," Hunter interrupted calmly. He could do the calm, serene Ninja as well as Cam's father could. "I think what we were doing had equal importance to the team."

Sensei remained quiet. "Yes, so it would seem. However, there is one thing your necklace does not explain." With his cane, Sensei reached out and tapped a button on Cam's computer.

The image that popped up on the viewing screen was of them from only moments before. Caught in Lothor's energy discharge, holding hands in a way that had felt most natural at the time but now looked quite awkward and discharging their own radiant light back at Lothor. They watched as Lothor's beam split apart and their beam knocked him flat on his back. Sensei stopped the playback just as their own white energy beam stopped shooting from their fingers.

"I have heard of enchanted charms that offer protection, but never in all my years have I seen such a display of shared power. And I assure you, nowhere on the face of this earth is there a charm which would enable such a thing."

There was silence as neither Cam nor Hunter offered an explanation, and Sensei sighed.

"I have never lied to you Cameron. I would have hoped you would have shown the same courtesy to me." Sensei finally turned to face them, his face hard. "Whatever it is you've gotten yourselves into, I will not offer my help again. This is your chance."

Cam and Hunter shared a look. Hunter crossed his arms stubbornly over his chest, and Cam gave him a tiny nod.

"We're fine, dad." Cam told him.

"Thanks for the offer." Hunter finished.

Sensei looked between them once more. "Right." He hopped back down to the habitat card, gave them a cold look before zooming down the hallway and added, "Clean up your own mess."

* * *

"How can he expect us to be open with him when he comes off all condescending and holier-than-thou?" Hunter wanted to know as he and Cam trudged up the stairs to the portal.

"It's just the way he is." Cam muttered. He really didn't feel well about the way things had gone with his father, but there was nothing he could do about it now.

"Maybe we should have told him." Hunter suggested in a tone that said he was only saying it because it had to be said.

"Right, and tell him what, Hunter?" Cam scolded. "That our mothers gave each other enchanted necklaces when we were kids and never told him about it, and that we somehow awoke this bond that's got us completely twisted around and now we find out that we have really unnatural powers that no one, including us, can explain, and-" Hunter caught his hand in a comforting way, and Cam couldn't help the comfort that washed over him at Hunters touch.

_I'm sorry._ Hunter told him. _I didn't mean to cause such a problem with you and your dad. _

Cam sighed. _The problem was already there. Forget about it._

_We'll figure it out._ Hunter squeezed his hand and dropped it, and Cam sighed again at the lost of contact. He didn't realize why Hunter had dropped his hand until a moment later when he saw the others in front of them. Coming up the steps and out of Ninja Ops they shouldn't have been surprised to see the rest of the team waiting for them.

"So how much trouble are you guys in for ditching practice this morning?" Shane grinned at them, while Tori looked sympathetic and Dustin looked confused. Blake was looking at the ground apart from them, his arms crossed.

Hunter managed to shrug it off. "Pfft, we just got a stern lecture about our responsibilities."

"He was pretty upset when you guys weren't there," Tori mentioned. "Looks like you got off easy."

It didn't even take them sharing a commiserating look to know just how wrong she was.

After some childish banter that Cam really wasn't interested in, the winds decided to head home for the day. They began walking away, probably expecting Blake and Hunter to follow, and when they didn't everyone looked at them.

It was Blake who stood unchanged, even when Hunter had made an effort to start walking.

"Bro?" Hunter questioned. "You coming?"

Blake looked up from the ground and right at Hunter, and something in his face set off a warning bell in Cam's head.

"Mom's necklace?" He asked quietly.

Hunter sighed and reached out to put a hand on Blake's shoulder. "Blake, it's complicated."

Blake shrugged his hand off with a wince and turned, pushing through the winds and heading down the road.

"Blake, wait!" Hunter began to go after him, but Tori laid a hand on his chest to stop him.

"Hunter… maybe I'd better go after him?" She suggested. Hunter looked furious.

"He's _my_ brother!" Hunter reminded, but Cam sent him a warning in his head.

_Who maybe needs to calm down before you go and lie to him?_ He said it as gently as he could, but Hunter tossed a hurt look over his shoulder at him. He did back off and nod at Tori though, who sprinted off after Blake.

Even with Hunter fuming and the others looking strangely confused, Cam's mind was buzzing with new questions. How much did his father know about what was going on? What had happened when he and Hunter had unleashed that energy blast? What did Lothor think had happened? And more importantly, had Miko Watanabe really kept what happened that day in the park a secret from her husband?


	11. Strangly Easy To Mistake for Loathing

_AN: I've been getting some good questions about some of my plot holes. I am trying to clear them up, really, but some of them may not get resolved. I hope this dream sequence is clear enough, but if it isn't feel free to tell me in your review and I'll try to explain some more of it. Thanks for all you lovely people who have stayed with me through this! Just think, only about 6 more chapters or so and we're done! ... I think? Eh, feed the author anyway!_

Tori called them all to let them know Blake was ready to go, and Hunter wanted to know if he wanted to talk first, and Tori paused, and they all heard what Blake said.

"Actually, I think it'd be better if he found his own way home. He seems to be good at that these days."

Hunter was furious, and Cam tried to send him reassuring thoughts in his head but Hunter was completely blocking him out and… it actually _hurt_ when he did that. Had this been what Cam had been doing to Hunter for almost 2 weeks?

He rubbed his chest, feeling sullen. Tori asked if Hunter would be able to get home alright, and Hunter responded that he probably wouldn't be coming home, since it would make Blake so much happier.

Tori tried to remedy the situation, but the damage was done. Blake was hurt at being left out, Hunter was furious at his brother for being so immature, and Cam was feeling the whiplash of Hunter's emotions like never before.

The winds, completely confused and unable to do anymore good, disappeared. Hunter remained, his back turned to Cam. Cam stared at him for a moment, trying to sense something, but nothing had changed. Desperate for the feeling in his chest to abate he turned and began walking into Ninja Ops, trying his hardest to block all of Hunter out of his head.

He had no idea how hard that was going to be.

Hunter followed him. "Where are you going?"

"Away from you!" Cam answered, hurrying back down the steps.

"Hey, you're the one that started this whole thing-"

"Me?" Cam turned on him, his own anger growing. "I think this was kind of a fifty-fifty deal!"

He tried to breathe, but Hunter's next remark made it harder. "Blake is furious with me because of you!"

"And my father might never speak to me again because I've been lying to him about you!" Cam admonished. Hunter didn't look very regretful. "Look, I know you're close with your brother, but you didn't seem all that upset when my dad was angry with me-"

"Don't you dare compare your relationship with your father to the one I have with my brother!" Hunter warned. He looked like he was ready to charge Cam the next time he stepped out of line. "My brother has known everything about me, until you! Your father doesn't know you at all, so this shouldn't be that difficult for him. Your problems were already there, you said that yourself."

Cam bristled. "And so were yours! You just couldn't see them because you never pay enough attention to your brother to notice!"

"And you barely talk to your father at all! God, it's no wonder you're so screwed up." Hunter looked disgusted, and that hurt more than Cam was ever going to tell him. He tried to muster up the same sort of expression when he answered.

"Your one to talk." He whispered, and it came out much weaker than he'd intended.

Yanking the necklace from his neck Hunter held it up, brandishing it irritably. "What happened with this? I thought you knew-"

"It saved your life out there, in case you didn't notice!" Cam interrupted, yelling right back at him. "Since you were stupid enough to get hit by one of Lothor's blasts!"

Hunter growled. "Don't call me stupid, Cam." And he pushed him.

Just like that, it was there. The rage. Cam was seeing red, and the anger was overwhelming. Infuriated, Cam pushed him back.

Hunter stood there, fuming, unwilling to respond, so Cam pushed him again.

"It was your idea to keep this a secret." Hunter said coldly. Cam objected immediately, but Hunter kept going. "Because you're so damn afraid of who you are that you can't even-"

"Who am I, Hunter?!" Cam yelled, tossing his hands out to the sides and turning. "You seem to think you know pretty well. Who am I?"

Hunter opened his mouth to answer, but Cam glared at him and he stopped.

"You_ don't_ know! You've known me for 2 weeks, Hunter! You can't stand there and tell me who I am." Cam shouted, and Hunter came at him, gripping his arms tightly.

"And you can't stand there and pretend that this bond isn't changing everything you ever were." Hunter whispered harshly. He was close now, too close, and Cam tried to twist out of his grip.

Hunter pulled him closer, and Cam could feel his breathe on his skin. He knew what Hunter was going to do, knew what he wanted to do, and was suddenly aware that they were still in a very open control room that his father could walk back into at any moment.

Of course, what he would find would depend entirely on Cam's next choice to kiss Hunter or knee him.

"Not here." He muttered, and Hunter let him go. Cam began walking down the hallway, Hunter close behind him.

They reached his room quickly, and Cam grabbed Hunters arm and hauled him inside. He closed the door behind him, locking it.

Then he was shoved up against it so hard Cam thought his ribs would be bruised. Hunter was so close to him, but he was so far away. He was still so angry that Cam couldn't feel anything and he pushed back, twisted out of Hunter's grip and kneed him in the stomach.

Hunter doubled over and backed off, and Cam waited for him to get his balance back before lunging at him again.

Hunter punched him. Hard, and in the jaw. Cam yelled an obscenity and swung for Hunter madly, hitting him once upside the head. Hunter caught his fists, spun him around once so he was twisted up and then wrapped Cam's own arms around himself. Hunter held them in place with his hands, gripping Cam's wrists so hard there would be fingerprint bruises there in the morning.

Hunter forced him backward until he was backed up against the wall again, and his ribs screamed. Their mouths collided, wet and angry and hungry and hot.

Cam didn't want it. Not like this. But he couldn't help himself and when Hunter finally let his hands go he found them cupping Hunter's face as they kissed, wild and passionate.

It was Hunter who pulled away, and the anger at the edges of Cam's senses threatened to spill over again.

"Too much." Hunter whispered breathlessly. He disentangled himself from Cam, stepped away, and promptly slid to the ground.

Cam knew what he meant. The anger, the rage, the seeing red… it's what had happened to them the first few days they'd been bonded, and it had drained them beyond reason. At this point, being angry at each other was just not an option.

The only way to fix the already great drain on their energy seemed to be with tenderness, and if Cam didn't know any better he'd have just left it there. But he knew how lonely he'd feel when he left with Hunter angry with him, and he knew how empty he'd feel later and it was one of the worst feelings he'd ever had.

He rubbed his eyes and tried to slow his breathing. And when that didn't help the tightness in his chest he let out an annoyed groan.

Sighing in frustration, Cam reached a hand down to the crimson ranger, who was crumpled on the floor, his face in his hands. When Hunter didn't take his hand, even though Cam was sure he must have known it was there, Cam bent down and pulled one of Hunter's hands away from his face gently. He reached for the other, and soothingly he pulled Hunter up with him, pressing them together. Holding onto him as though he might slip away again.

Hunter opened his eyes to look at him. "'M sorry," he whispered, and Cam closed his mouth with his own, gently and easily melding them together.

He was so tired. This day had felt unbearably long, but he couldn't tear himself from Hunter. And he didn't think he could bring himself to kick him out now, but he wasn't sure he was ready for this.

Hunter pulled away and tugged Cam closer, resting his forehead on Cam's shoulder. Cam took the opportunity to run his fingers through Hunter's soft, blonde hair.

"I don't want to go." Hunter whispered against his neck. Cam shivered.

Honesty was the only real way to go with Hunter these days, because he would know when Cam was lying and Cam had never been this openly vulnerable to anyone in his life and Hunter hadn't done anything to deserve it and all he could do was tell him the truth. "I don't want you to, either."

Hunter hugged him closer, one hand around his neck and the other sinking into his back pocket. It was a strangely… intimate gesture that he hadn't expected. So Cam did the same thing to him.

He felt Hunter grinning, and a ball of warmth burst inside his chest. Already, the exhaustion was melting into contentment, and Cam found himself grinning back. He felt like such a fool.

Hunter kissed him again, and the anger completely ebbed away. "Not a fool," Hunter teased, pressing his forehead to Cam's. "Just foolish."

Cam laughed, because he could, and because it made Hunter happy, and the chime that alerted him of Hunter's wellbeing was back. "Is that what it felt like?"

Hunter looked at him questioningly, but didn't say anything.

"When I blocked you out for all that time." Cam amended, stroking Hunter's face. "It felt like something was… crushing my chest. It was hard to breathe."

Hunter looked at him for a long moment before kissing him again. It wasn't a yes or a no, but the answer came later, ghosted across Cam's mind ever so gently. _It felt like my heart was breaking. But I suppose 'crushing my chest' is a good way to put it, yeah._

Cam closed his mouth, and Hunter was forced to stop kissing him and pull away. He looked at him as though he was embarrassed, and it made Cam smirk. _Could you even hear me?_

Hunter shook his head. _Bits and pieces. I was just so angry…_

"I noticed." Cam didn't think he could put just the right amount of venom into his words in his head, so he said it aloud instead. Hunter looked remorseful, and he tenderly checked the side of Cam's face where he had punched him.

Cam thought about playing it up to make it look like it really hurt, but he didn't want to make Hunter feel any worse. He had probably done the same amount of damage. Gently, Hunter tilted his head and then he felt Hunter's lips on the already bruising spot. His stomach fluttered a little at the surprisingly sweet gesture, but it made it feel better, so he let Hunter keep doing it.

When Hunter pulled away, a tugging at his senses let him know something was wrong. Opening his eyes to look at Hunter, he asked "What's strange?"

Hunter glanced at him, then back at his jaw. _Does it still hurt?_

Cam felt it with his own hand, and found that the pain had mostly faded. _Not really. Why?_

_Because it's not bruised anymore._ Hunter told him. Cam looked at him skeptically, and Hunter backed away so Cam could go look in his mirror.

Hunter followed him, and watched as Cam did a thorough inspection of his face. Finding it to be not in the least bit discolored and the pain almost completely faded, Cam glanced at Hunter in the mirror.

_Told you so._ Hunter teased, poking him in the side. Cam winced, and Hunter laid a gentle hand over his bruised ribs. "Maybe I should get to work on those."

Cam gave him a look. "Thanks, but I think the power can take care of that."

Hunter looked put out, but he didn't argue.

"So… not going home, I suppose?" He asked. Hunter leaned forward and rested his chin on Cam's shoulder.

"You don't want me to." Hunter told him with a raised eyebrow. Then he sighed and added, "And neither does Blake."

Cam winced. "Sorry."

Hunter shrugged. "He'll get over it. Your dad will get over. They can deal."

That was surprisingly calmer from their earlier outburst and Cam couldn't help sniggering at their own absurdity. Hunter must have heard him, because he gently bit Cam's shoulder in retaliation.

* * *

Cam couldn't remember how they'd found themselves on his bed later that evening, but it was a comfortable position and he didn't really want to move. He and Hunter were barely touching. Mirroring each others positions and facing each other on top of the covers, Hunter's foot would occasionally tap Cam's, and their fingers lay intertwined between their heads. 

Hunter's thumb was stroking Cam's palm in a repetitive fashion. Cam took the time to study Hunter's face. In the darkness it should have been hard to see Hunter's expression, but Cam could feel it more than see it and it was alarming how little he noticed the difference.

Hunter's foot touched his again, and Cam's foot twitched at the heat.

"Your feet," Hunter declared a moment later, "are freezing."

Cam shrugged. "You could stop playing footsie with me like a fourth grader and not have to complain about it."

Hunter made a squawking sound. "This is not footsie. When we're playing footsie, you'll know."

Cam just grinned and let the conversation fall as Hunter continued to rub their feet together playfully. Cam caught sight of the silver charm still hanging from Hunter's neck. He disentangled their entwined hands at Hunter's protests and reached for it.

He fiddled with it in his fingers for a moment, turning it over and over and seeing if there was anything he hadn't noticed before. When he found nothing, he sighed and held it there.

"I should run some tests on this." Cam told Hunter, who's eyes were closed.

"Why?" Hunter wanted to know. "Do you have tests that will tell you what kind of protection charm is on it?"

Cam gave him a look, and even though Hunter's eyes were closed Cam was sure he could feel his annoyance. "You can't test for protection charms. They either work or they don't."

Hunter opened his eyes. "Then what's the point in running tests on it?"

Cam didn't answer.

"What did you mean this morning?" Hunter paused to yawn. "When you said you'd figured it out?"

Cam sighed. "I thought… maybe part of the secret of all this was in the necklaces. I mean… they obviously traded so we'd be able to put the pieces together on our own someday."

Hunter didn't say anything, but when Cam looked at him he thought, _I don't think our moms planned on not being here to explain it to us._

Cam swallowed. _Sometimes we plan for things we never expect to happen._

Hunter reached over and kissed him then. Quickly, chastely, it was the simplest thing Cam had to do and it was the most complicated thing he knew. But Hunter's lips on his let him know it was okay, that he wasn't alone.

Hunter hovered above him, and kissed his forehead. _Do you think, maybe… these dreams are from our moms? Trying to show us what they never got a chance to tell us?_

Cam sighed, yanking slightly on Hunter's necklace. _If I learn nothing else from this experience, at least I've learned that anything is possible. _

Hunter smirked in that way he did, and leaned down to kiss Cam again. His lips were soft and this was an invasive kiss. Cam opened his mouth and let Hunter in, marveling how they moved in perfect rhythm with one another.

When Hunter finally pulled away, Cam noticed the puzzled look on his face. "What's wrong?"

Hunter looked at him. "Earlier, when you said Blake and I had problems… do you really think he resents me for not paying close enough attention?"

Cam sighed. Things said in the heat of the moment often came back to haunt him. "I don't know. Do you really think I'm afraid of who I am?"

"Yes." The answer was instantaneous, and Hunter looked perfectly confident about it. "Your amazing, Cam. Gay or not. And you'd rather hid who you are and not let anyone get close to you instead of showing the world how incredible you really are."

_You're just trying to keep me from getting angry with you again._ Cam opined. Hunter pulled him close and kissed him again.

_Maybe,_ he agreed. _But I mean it too._

_I didn't mean what I said about Blake,_ Cam blurted as they kissed. _He… you're his brother. He loves you. He just wants to feel like you respect him as more than your brother._

_Family advice from the terminally dysfunctional,_ Hunter teased. _I'll remember that._

They continued kissing, and Cam was perfectly happy to let the exchange drop, because it could only get worse if they kept talking about it and he was far too content for that at this particular moment.

"So," Hunter mumbled as he pulled away and resettled himself. "We have some ancient text that talks about the bond, our odd new abilities which so far include being able to heal each other and white energy beams, our weird dreams about meeting before we actually met, and our mom's necklaces."

"My mom's necklace." Cam remembered suddenly. "We never went to get it."

Hunter grinned. "We were too busy kicking the crap out of each other."

Cam was already moving. "Let's go."

"Cam." Hunter stopped him with a hand on his hip. "It's late. We can't go now. We'll go first thing tomorrow."

They shared a rueful look, and at the same time intoned, "After training."

Cam let Hunter pull him back to bed, and they resettled in their nest. Maybe finding Miko's necklace would give them some answers. He wondered if the same protection charm was on it. He wondered if the charm had been put in place the moment the two women exchanged necklaces, or if Miko had placed the charm on the silver necklace later. If so, would the golden necklace that had fallen into Casey's possession work the same? Or would it be different? Had the necklaces always been protected, even before the women had exchanged them? Had they known they'd exchanged protection charms?

"It's too late to be thinking that much." Hunter yawned again, and he pulled Cam closer to him.

_Can't help it,_ Cam told him.

_Sleep time,_ Hunter insisted. He had somehow snaked an arm underneath Cam and they were closer than they had been before. Hunter placed his free hand on Cam's face before he kissed him again, and Cam melted into him, enjoying the feel of Hunter's warm body pressed up against his.

Did this make him gay? He was kissing a man, in bed with a man, spending most of his time with a man… but it wasn't totally his fault. It was the bond he shared with Hunter that made him feel like this. Because these couldn't be his real feelings. He'd know, because he'd never felt like this before. And maybe he had to be with Hunter because of the bond, but if they found a way out of this would he still want him? Would he need him as desperately as he needed him now?

It was a rare moment when Cameron Watanabe didn't want to answers to his questions.

Cam let his hand fall onto Hunter's hip, and they laid there lipping at each others mouths until sleep had almost claimed them.

_I never would have taken you for a cuddler_, Hunter whispered.

_I never would have imagined I'd be cuddling with you,_ Cam agreed.

Hunter just kissed him sleepily. _Good thing you can't see everything in the future, then.

* * *

_

_He was floating somewhere. The images were jumbled. This wasn't like before. This wasn't clear or vivid or concise… he didn't understand what was happening. He suddenly was whooshed away and thrown somewhere. _

_He saw Casey Bradley the night she died, attacked by a hooded figure…_

_She was trying to protect her sons as they escaped. Hunter and Blake were running, never looking back, and Casey's voice screamed through his mind "Hunter!" _

_He was whirled around, facing a crisp white hospital room. His mother lay in the bed, with his father by her side. An 8 year old version of himself walked over and hugged her. _

"_You're getting so big," Miko grinned as a tear rolled down her cheek, her voice barely a whisper. "Oh, Cameron."_

_Twisting around again, he watched the heart monitor go flat from the hallway, and heard his mother's voice in his head. "People who love you never really leave you. They stay in your heart. I'll always be with you." _

_He was sucked backward, watching as he and Hunter's 4 year old selves cast a glowing orb of light around themselves. Whooshing forward, he watched the scene from two weeks ago where he and Hunter had created the orb for the second time. _

_He was spun around, knocked over, and he saw himself and Hunter in the truck, their blood mingling together before the white light blinded him, and then the scars were all he could see. _

_Someone was speaking, but he wasn't sure who. It was more than one person. No, the person kept changing. First it was his mother, then Hunter's mother, then Hunter… his father, Lothor… himself, the other rangers… but what were they saying? _

_It was too loud, too much, and he couldn't make sense of it. He was looking down at himself and Hunter, sleeping side by side. He was sent further back in time, back when Lothor had been Kiya Watanabe, and he'd look at Cam as he realized that he was Miko's son. Cam had known he'd known, but he hadn't known how. _

_Whooshed forward, he saw himself as a child again, but this time the hooded figure who'd killed Casey Bradley stood in front of him and his mother. He drew back his hood, revealing the horribly scarred face of Kiya Watanabe. _

"_This ends now!" Kiya discharged a bolt of energy, but it went around them as Miko hugged Cam tightly. The silver charm hung from her neck. _

_Tugged backward again, the voices got louder until they were all he could hear, and he was surrounded by the sound of the voices and by their faces. _

"_Hard to come by, harder to lose," They spoke, and Cam made out the words even as they were screamed at him. "Bound partners who did not choose."_

_He watched Hunter and Blake as they saw their parents in the cave of lost ninja's, pleading for them to come back. _

_Casey Bradley as she promised, "We'll always be looking after you." _

"_In life, in death, together they must stay." _

_He watched the first time Hunter had kissed him, and the first time he'd kissed back. He watched everything as though he was seeing it from outside. _

"_Or a costly price there will be to pay."_

_Kiya's face overlapped with Lothor's as he realized he couldn't attack Hunter. He was whooshed upwards, towards the heavens, only to end up on Lothor's ship, watching his uncle laugh hysterically. _

"_I knew this day would come!" He shouted to no one, holding a badly damaged scroll in his hand. "You couldn't protect him forever, could you Miko?" _

"_For be warned, this power comes at a cost." _

_He was watching himself, squirming on the ground as he pleaded for Hunter. The scar on his hand where he'd cut it on the glass and a scar he didn't have yet burned bright red. _

_He was dying. _

"_While unexpectedly revealed, this prophecy is sealed."_

_He watched as Casey and Miko traded necklaces that day in the park, watched himself pick up the frame with the picture of Hunter and his mother, watched himself find the photo of him and his mother. _

_Everything whirled together again and he couldn't stop it. He wanted to wake up, wanted to find himself safe in Hunter's arms. He knew he was dreaming, but there was no way to wake up from this dream, this nightmare. _

"_Cameron." Miko's voice over road the voices speaking the prophetic poem and he turned to see her, dressed in the same clothes he'd seen Hunter's parent's dressed in at the cave of lost ninja's. "What you have seen are some events that have already transpired, and some events that have not yet come to pass. You are in grave danger, my son."_

"_I don't understand!" He reached for her, but she was already fading away. "Mother!" _

"_The future is what you make of it, Cameron." Hood pulled over her head, Miko disappeared into a cloud of smoke, and the voices once again took over. _

"_To fight for the right, in moments of most need, these enemies turned lovers…Will never bleed."_

Cam sprang up in his bed sweating, unable to breathe. Hunters hand was on his chest, and Cam gripped it tightly.

"Cam, it's okay." Hunter soothed, holding him against his chest. _It was just a nightmare. It's okay. _

"No, Hunter." Cam shook his head, ran a hand through his hair and twisted until he could see Hunter's face clearly. "I don't think this was just a nightmare."


	12. Glittering Blackness

_AN: I know, I know. This has taken forever. Not only was my life exstremely complicated by a boy and by school, there was just something not right about this chapter, and I didn't want to post it until I'd given it enough time to mature. Finally, here it is. Enjoy, and leave some love on your way out!_

Cam never got back to sleep that night. He had relayed the information from his dream to Hunter, who had frowned and looked puzzled but he hadn't known what to say and Cam couldn't blame him. Cam couldn't be sure of anything in the dream, but he had never dreamt before all this, so it had to mean something.

He just wasn't sure what.

He was less than comforted to know that Hunter hadn't shared his dream this time. They'd been dreaming in unison since this whole thing started, and having to explain it to him instead of Hunter just instantly knowing had thrown him off.

Funny, that. He'd gotten so used to Hunter knowing everything he did that he wasn't sure how to react when he knew something Hunter didn't.

Things had certainly changed in the last 2 weeks.

When they awoke that morning, they entered the main room of Ninja Ops to find the winds already there. There were no questions about why Hunter and Cam would be emerging together, from the same hallway at the same time. No, no one seemed to even notice as they entered, a fact to which Cam was grateful for, but he dreaded what they were all so focused on.

Sitting at the table, the winds stared blankly at a piece of parchment. Cam recognized his father's twisted scrawl almost immediately.

"What's that?" He asked, holding out his hand for it.

Tori looked at him, and handed him the parchment smoothly. "You tell us."

Holding the note in-between them so they both could see, Cam was horrified at what he read.

_**Rangers,**_

_**It has come to my attention that some of you are of the opinion that you no longer require my help. While my opinion on that matter may differ, I find the lesson is most well learned when the student is aloud to make their own mistakes. I will be in retreat for an unspecified amount of time, returning when I see fit. Do not worry; I am sure you are quite capable of handling whatever situations you may create for yourself on your own.**_

_**Most amiably,  
**_**_Sensei Kanoi Watanabe_**

Mouth agape, Cam heard his fathers malicious words from the day prior reflected in his head. "_Clean up your own mess."_

"What did he say to you guys yesterday?" Shane asked, standing and giving them a suspicious look.

"Nothing that implied he'd leave!" Hunter objected as he finished reading. Cam grimaced, because yes, his father had told them flat out that he wouldn't be offering his help again. Apparently, that went for all the rangers.

"He can't be, like… gone for good, right?" Dustin asked, scratching his head. "I mean, he's going to come back, right?"

No one answered.

Blake trudged down through the doors of Ninja Ops belatedly, holding up his hands as though to stop the onslaught he thought would be coming. "I know, I know, I'm late. Give me the extra laps, I don't really care."

Tori rolled her eyes, smacking her hands on the table and standing. "Oh, can it Blake. We have bigger problems here than you and your brother arguing about some necklace."

Blake looked like he'd been slapped, and the other rangers were watching Tori with varying levels of fear.

"Sensei is gone, and he didn't just _leave_ for no reason." Tori gave Cam a look, and then shot them all a warning look. "I don't know why, but we're on our own now…"

Cam stopped listening as Hunter invaded his mind. _We should tell them._

_How?_ Cam wanted to know, turning to give Hunter an estranged look. _This team is divided enough. We don't need to come between them-_

_We've already come between them. This whole thing has come between us._ Hunter scolded, and his voice softened. _It's one thing to put ourselves in danger. We can't put them in danger-_

"They were already in danger!" Cam shouted at him. "Newsflash: It's called being a ranger!"

Hunter was looking at him with wide eyes, and Cam realized what he'd done. He could feel the other ranger's eyes burning into his back. Turning, he gave them a scowl that should have sent fear into their hearts, but his own heart was pounding so loudly in his ears that he could barely hear anything else.

"Alright." Shane gave him a powerful look, the look of a leader who knew something was being kept from him and didn't like it. "I think it's time you tell us what's going on here."

Cam's head was pounding. Things were spiraling out of control. He couldn't think, couldn't breathe, and he really wanted to hit someone.

"Nothing's going on!" Cam told him, grinding his teeth. "It all just… fine!"

_Denial isn't a good look on you, _Hunter scolded.

That last thing he was going to do was say it. If Hunter was so determined, he could do it himself.

Cam couldn't even look at him as he felt the gong of anger bang inside his head. Groaning, he pressed a hand to his temple and ran from the room.

On his way up the stairs, he thought he heard Tori groan in agony.

* * *

This is where it had started. Or at least, this is where it felt like it had started. That day, throwing stones into the water, he'd stood in the same place he sat now. Lothor had attacked, and he'd become a ranger.

He'd met his mother, found out that Lothor was actually his uncle, become part of the team, and several weeks later been thrown into this mess of a romance with Hunter. He hadn't _asked_ for this. Really, he hadn't. He didn't think his being a ranger would come with all this extra… baggage. He didn't think he'd be drudging up all these strange memories of his mother, didn't think he'd be dealing with choices his parents had made for him.

His life was unnecessarily complex these days.

His entire life was made up of secrets and he hated it. He hated keeping a secret from his father, even if he knew he had to. He didn't want to alienate the rest of the rangers from him again, when they'd only just begun to be friends. He didn't know why his mother had kept his and Hunter's meeting as children a secret from his father. He still wondered why his father had never told him about Kiya. It wasn't hard to believe there were more things he didn't know about his life. What secrets had his parents kept from each other? What secrets was his father still keeping from him? How could he trust _anyone _these days?

Hunter, of course, was an entirely different story. Cam could trust him because Hunter couldn't lie to him, at least not now. Not when Cam could sense his thoughts, his emotions. He didn't like it, and there was always that something that wanted not to trust him. Cam wondered if that was the sane part of his brain, trying to counteract the effects of the bond. He was beginning to think he'd never know what it felt like to be sane again.

Was this was being in love felt like? Voluntarily, of course. He felt like he couldn't control himself, didn't want anything but to be with Hunter, and Cam needed him. To a degree he didn't fully understand. He'd been forced into this thing with him, been forced to be with him. Only he didn't totally dislike it anymore. And maybe it was the bond talking but Cam sometimes felt Hunter was the best thing that had happened to him since becoming a ranger.

God, there were so many things wrong with that thought. But being a ranger had not turned out how he had thought it was going to.

'Everyone's experience with the power is different,' his father had told him. 'We all must one day make our choice; sometimes the right thing may look like the wrong thing and the wrong thing may seem right. But in our hearts, we know the difference.'

In our hearts, Cam thought bitterly. If his heart wasn't being controlled and overpowered by his bond with Hunter he might actually listen to it!

'The choice is never easy. Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same.'

Funny, that his fathers words of wisdom would be coming to him now. Of all the times, countless years of listening to his father ramble on about right and wrong and honor and truth and justice… and when his father broke every rule of family he'd ever laid down for Cam to follow, that was when it all seemed to strike a nerve.

Family stuck together. And yeah, maybe Cam had broken the cardinal rule of 'Family holds truth above all else' but his mother had done that first and Cam wasn't about to go telling his father that. Family wasn't supposed to judge, either. Family was… nothing like he and his father had turned out to be.

He hadn't realized how much had been lacking in their father-son relationship until recently. One of the downsides to his experience with the power, he supposed.

Had there ever been an upside?

Footsteps behind him triggered his ranger senses, and he knew they weren't Hunters. He grimaced, realizing he'd left Hunter to be fed to the wolves while he brooded, but not totally feeling guilty enough to go back. These footsteps were light, dainty, and he knew it would be Tori because she seemed to be laboring under the impression that she had to handle all of the team's disputes by herself because she was the woman.

Were all women like this? Suddenly being gay didn't sound quite so bad.

He heard her sigh, and he glanced over his shoulder at her. "You really don't have to try and fix this, Tori." He told her easily. "Trust me, you can't."

Tori came and sat down beside him. "I don't know what's going on, but I've found when someone runs away from a room full of people they usually have _something_ going on."

"So you follow them to get them to open up and you get to take all the credit?" Cam teased. Tori didn't look particularly amused.

Still, she smirked just a little before answering, "Someone has to try."

"I really can't talk about it." Cam began, and Tori just sighed in aggravation.

"I don't know what it is with guys and locking their feelings away like that's gonna make it better, but it's getting really old. I need some female friends." She declared.

Cam didn't say anything to that, because hey, a little less testosterone in Tori's life might do her some good.

"Hunter wasn't too happy when you ran out like that." Tori said conversationally. "If I didn't know better, I'd say he was worried."

Cam scoffed. "Good thing you know better, Tor."

She looked over at him with narrowed eyes. "What's with you guys anyway? I thought you hated him."

"I-" Cam paused in the middle of telling her he still did, because he was really sick of lying, and even sicker of half-truths.

But telling her what was with him and Hunter was even less of an option. It sounded crazy. It was crazy! And he wasn't going to go running his mouth off without talking out the story with Hunter first. They still had things to do, after all, and after they had his mother's necklace maybe they could start to explain what had happened to their teammates. Maybe… if they left out the part about the kissing.

"It's complicated." Cam answered at last, sighing despite himself.

Tori let out an amused chuckle. "You know, it's funny. When we asked him about you, he said the _exact_ same thing."

Cam just grinned. "Imagine that."

Tori was silent, and she played with the sand, picking it up and running it through her hands. "You know," she added after a moment, "Blake thinks he's been replaced. Because Hunter is spending so much time with you. He's jealous."

Cam waited, because he really didn't know what to say to that, and anything he said would be along the lines of 'Trust me, what Hunter and I have is nothing like a brotherly bond'. Which really, could only go one way. So he kept his mouth shut instead.

"But I don't think he has anything to be jealous of." Tori said casually. "At least, not the way he thinks."

Cam looked over at her, wondering what she thought she saw. He knew that whatever she was thinking was going on between him and Hunter was so far from the truth that he couldn't even begin to explain it.

Tori just returned his stare evenly, waiting for an answer.

Their morphers chimed, and it was Tori who answered. "Go for Tori and Cam."

"Cybercam activated to tell us that Lothor's back." Shane informed them. "Think we can pull it together long enough to fight him?"

Tori glanced over at Cam, he nodded, and she answered, "We're still a team, Shane. We're on our way."

* * *

It was just Lothor who was attacking the shopping mall. With the exception of a couple swarms of Kelzacks, Lothor was by himself. He was holding something in his hand as the rangers approached, and there was a devilish look in his eyes.

Cam paused, knowing they had to face him but unable to make his legs move. Something was telling him to turn back, to run away. Something wasn't right, and he shouldn't be here. His amulet was burning against his chest.

"Cam!" Shane shouted from ahead of him. "Come on!"

They were his team, and they were counting on him. He forced the voice in his mind to be silent and he rushed forward, joining them as they began to fight back the Kelzacks.

Lothor stayed back, didn't move while they fought his Kelzacks. They went down easily, and the warning bells in Cam's mind were going off. This was too easy, not enough to keep them all busy… This was a trap.

He felt Hunter register those words, and he heard him call out, "Guys, fall back!"

He felt the beam heading for him before he saw it, heard Hunter cry out in his mind and he lifted his bokken to block it but it was too late. Lothor had hit him, but it wasn't with any ordinary energy blast. He bokken disappeared, and his limbs went numb. He was encased in some kind of transparent orb, the kind he'd seen the ninja students taken in that first day.

The orb went around him and he was sucked forward. Lothor was inside the bubble with him, gripping the front of his uniform as Cam found himself unable to move.

They were rising, and he could feel Hunter panicking, trying to get to him, but he couldn't stop and he couldn't fight it. He was paralyzed.

"I know what you've done, boy." Lothor whispered to him as they floated above the rangers in Lothor's orb. "Your mother, that arrogant half blood, thought she could protect you from me."

He held up a scroll in his free hand. Looking at it, Cam could see the familiar markings that told of the bond. It was the original scroll, old and tattered and… glowing.

"But there were some things even she couldn't foresee," Lothor continued viciously. "Don't worry, nephew. I'm going to help you."

Lothor reached for Cam's amulet, and Cam tried to cry out, tried to stop him, but whatever Lothor had done to him had made him unable to respond at all.

Yanking the amulet from Cam's neck, Lothor gave him a malicious grin. He opened Cam's hand, the hand that was scarred from the day he had healed Hunter's arm, and said something Cam didn't understand.

"_Solvo!" _

And he pressed the scroll into Cam's hand and let him go. He was falling, unable to stop himself, and he watched Lothor's twisted face smile down on him.

"Your welcome, nephew."

Cam cried out as his limbs and vocal chords came back to life. His hand was burning, his entire body was convulsing and he was falling so fast, too fast to stop…

Then everything went dark.

* * *

He was in the medical bay. That thought registered as he opened his eyes, but he couldn't remember how to work his limbs. He tried to lift his arm and found that it complied, so he raised his hand to rub his eyes.

He knew right then that something was different. He wasn't sure exactly what. He realized his hand was bandaged and he squinted, suddenly wondering where his glasses were.

He was alone. The thought nearly knocked the wind out of him. There was no comforting presence in his mind, no chime that alerted him of Hunter's state of mind, no feeling of belonging in his chest. He was solemnly, bitterly, alone.

And he was cold.

He sat up, saw his glasses on the table beside him and put them on. He tried to fight the panic that was quickly closing in on his senses. The battle, and Lothor… he had passed out. God, what had happened?

_Where_ was Hunter?

Cam jumped off the bed and sprinted into the control room. He came to a stumbling halt as he saw all five of the rangers sitting around the table with sodas.

Hunter was right there.

But he wasn't, he couldn't be. That wasn't Hunter, because if it was then…

"Cam!" Tori's gleeful shout startled him, and she came running over. The other rangers followed suit. "You're awake!"

"Dude, you had us going!" Shane told him, clasping him on the shoulder.

"Seriously, bro." Dustin added. "You fell like, a hundred feet or something!"

Cam wasn't listening. He was looking at Hunter, pleading with him. _Hunter, answer me_, he thought. _Please, can you hear me? _

Hunter just looked at him. His face was ashen, defeated, worried. But Cam couldn't feel anything from him.

"Are you okay Cam?" Tori was asking, her voice concerned.

Somehow, Cam found the presence of mind to answer. "Yeah. I think so. What… what happened?"

Tori began relaying the story to him and the others chimed in at the appropriate time, but Hunter never said a word.

"And then you were just falling and your hand was on fire." Tori told him.

"Dude, only the fire, it was green!" Dustin added.

"And Crimson." Tori added quickly. "It was kind of a mix."

No one said anything for a moment.

"You never hit the ground, though." Tori continued. "Your amulet started attacking Lothor and he had to drop it. It… well, we think it caught you."

Hunter held out his hand to him. Cam looked at him, stricken. He wanted to take it, wanted to feel something, but as he reached for it he saw that Hunter was not holding out his hand to him, but his amulet instead.

"Whatever he did to you up there, he must have had to take the amulet off to do it." Shane added hastily as Cam took the amulet from Hunter. "And when it fell… well it caught you but…"

The amulet was cracked. Cam held it up close to his eye, inspecting it. The stone that had been held inside the metal casing was cracked in half, and it no longer glowed or felt warm to the touch.

"The amulet would have protected you." It was Hunter's voice, but it didn't sound like Hunter's voice. It was grim and rough, and nothing like Cam had heard before. "That's why he took it off you."

Cam studied it, a lump growing in his throat.

"Do you think it will still morph?" Blake wondered quietly. It was a question that must have been on all their minds, and there was really only one way to find out.

He stepped back from the others, held his amulet up and called out, "Samurai Storm, Ranger Form!"

Nothing happened. He lowered his hand, and Tori was quick to try and comfort him.

"I'm sorry, Cam." She said gently, squeezing his arm.

"So that's it then." Cam replied dejectedly. "No more Samurai Ranger."

"Hey, we don't know that for sure, man." Shane told him, his leader attitude shining through. "We're rangers. We'll find a way to get your powers back."

Cam just shook his head. "Don't waste your time." He stuck the amulet in his pocket, but it felt cold and foreign.

"There was also this." Hunter spoke again, reaching over to Cam's desk and handing him a charred metal roll.

Their fingers brushed.

…There was nothing. No jolt of energy, no blanket of warmth. Just plain old skin against skin. Cam swallowed, hard.

He looked at the metal scroll Hunter had just handed him. It was the scroll Lothor had placed in his hand, or at least what was left of it. The paper had burned away, and the old metal was useless.

"And Hunter probably wants us to leave this part out, but he fainted again. For, like, no reason!" Dustin told them all, grinning.

Hunter wasn't looking at him, and no matter how Cam tried to catch his gaze he avoided it.

"What do you think happened up there?" Dustin asked after a moment of silence. "I mean, what did he do? Cause your amulet kind of broke itself, so."

Cam looked up, finally catching Hunter's eye. Hunter stared back at him and he knew. He knew right there what had happened and he didn't want to believe it, but it was true.

Lothor had broken their bond.

"I hate to be the one who asks," Blake cut in, glancing between his brother and Cam. "But what the hell has been going on this week?"

Nobody said anything. He didn't know what to say, because he had no idea what Hunter was thinking and he couldn't feel anything at all. They could tell them everything now. If Hunter wanted to, he could tell them the whole story, and there was nothing stopping him.

"Whatever it was," Hunter's voice was soft, sad, and unmistakably bitter. "It doesn't matter now."

Cam closed his eyes tightly, and listened for a moment as the others seemed to accept that and move on.

"We understand." Tori was saying, shoving the boys away from Cam. "We just, you know, like to be included." She gave Cam a worried look before shooing at the rest of the guys. "Now come on, Cam needs some rest. The power is gonna have to drain out of his system for a while."

She managed to get them all moving, and they wished him well before heading off. He didn't have the energy to be shocked at their unusual lack of questions. He figured there must have been some sort of discussion he and Hunter weren't a part of for them to be so easily deterred.

Hunter was following them up the stairs. He paused, and looked back over his shoulder.

He waited. Cam didn't say anything, unable to find the words. Hunter looked back up the stairs, as though to make sure their friends really were leaving and weren't going to come back for him. Then he turned slowly, crossed his arms, and leaned up against the doorframe.

It was a long, tense moment before either of them dared to breathe. It was Hunter who lost it first.

"I can't feel you." His whisper carried across the room to Cam's ears, but there was no echo in his head.

"I can't hear you." Cam agreed, and somehow Hunter knew what he meant because he didn't repeat what he'd said.

"So. I guess we got what we wanted, then." Hunter looked at Cam like he was hoping that wasn't true.

All he'd wanted from the start of this whole thing was to be separated from Hunter. Because it had been annoying, and ridiculous and impossible to deal with. He'd worked night and day on finding a way to break their bond. And now it was gone, leaving no evidence that it ever really existed in the first place. No evidence, except for the fading pink scars they shared.

Cam blinked at Hunter, who was still waiting for an answer. "I guess we did."

Hunter nodded solemnly. "That's it, then."

Cam felt an unexplainable pang in his heart as he answered. "Right. It's over."

Hunter looked at him, his eyes saying something he wanted Cam to see, but couldn't make him feel. Cam couldn't place it. It seemed so wrong that he couldn't even bring his mind to try.

Finally nodding and standing, Hunter grinned hollowly. "It was fun."

Cam returned his hollow smile. He couldn't bring himself to say anything, for fear his voice would betray him.

"So, now what?" Hunter asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "We go back to the way things were?"

Cam opened his mouth, and closed it again. He couldn't speak, couldn't risk it, because his mind wasn't spinning anymore and he was completely clear headed but it felt wrong and he didn't know why.

"Is that how you want it?" Hunter asked again, giving Cam a challenging look.

And in that moment, he was just Hunter. The same Hunter Cam had known before the bond, the same obnoxious ranger who would stare at him to make him uncomfortable, the same one who didn't know anything about Cam and didn't want to because he was Hunter.

There was no trace of the Hunter he'd grown fond of, the Hunter who had shared his blood, the innocent blond who knew Cam's entire history, the Hunter who had shared his bed the night before. The Hunter who had kissed him like it meant something.

He was gone. "Yeah, that's how I want it."

The old Hunter looked at him coldly, blinked rapidly, and turned without another word, stomping up the stairs and out of Cam's life.

Alone in the quiet control room, Cam felt a tear roll down his cheek. He backed up against the wall, tried to steady himself, and couldn't. He slid down to the floor, swallowing and trying to breathe but his body only cared about the tears now flowing from his eyes.

At long last, he was alone. And he was cold.


	13. Int: Six Days at the Bottom of the Ocean

_AN: I love being back! It's so great to read all your reviews, and know I'm driving you all crazy! This chapter is totally in canon, but technically the story can be read without it. Still, I love the song I used, which is titled "Goodbye Again" by Vertical Horizon, which I feel almost completely sums up the ideas behind Before We Met. Read, enjoy, and more plot is on it's way soon!_

He didn't dream that night. Or any night after it.

He slept like he always had; dreamlessly, restfully, peacefully. There were no unpleasant visions, and he had no trouble falling asleep.

It was almost like the last 2 weeks had never happened. Almost.

_I'm on the outside looking in,  
__What do I see?  
__So much of this left to begin,  
__Where would I be?  
__Out on the outside looking in,  
__Cover me through this night_

He didn't feel anything. It was odd, and surprising and not totally unexpected. His head was finally clear again, no trace of the strange spell that had nearly taken over his life. He was thinking like a sane person, and he was no longer preoccupied with useless feelings.

The bond was gone. He hadn't spoken to Hunter in three days, had barely even seen him, and he wasn't feeling the lack. His head was clear, his thoughts were untroubled, and he felt fine. It was refreshing to be able to sustain himself once more. He didn't need Hunter to feel good. He could laugh all by himself if he wanted to. His emotions were his own, and he didn't have to worry about influencing someone else with how he felt, or think that maybe his emotions weren't his own. He was self-sufficient again.

But there was an ache in his heart he couldn't explain. Something left unfinished that was eating at him.

Unlike before, he actually could put it to the back of his mind and leave it there. It didn't matter, he knew it didn't matter, and it would never have to matter. What mattered was that he had his life back.

And Hunter was no longer in it.

_Guess I don't know what's left to say…  
__But hear me out.  
__All of the dreams of yesterday  
__Keep breaking me down.  
__What's on the outside can you say  
__Or am I getting carried away…_

He ran tests on his amulet, tried to figure out if there was any way to repair the damage, but it seemed hopeless. His power was gone, and they were back to having five rangers.

He'd had one month, half of which had been occupied with the bond. One month of being a ranger didn't seem to be enough, but then again… Cam wasn't exactly sure he wanted the power back. As it drained from his body he found himself returning to normal, and it was almost a comforting feeling.

Almost.

He'd tried wearing the amulet, even shattered as it was, but it hadn't been the same. He'd put it in his desk drawer for safe keeping and tried to forget about it. It was strange, reaching up to hold something and finding nothing there. He couldn't understand how he felt such an immense loss over something that had never really been his to begin with.

It was the third day that he'd been forced to really think about all that had happened. He'd walked out of his room in the evening and back to the command room. He'd thought something was different, but his senses were no longer enhanced by the power and he wasn't sure what was wrong. But then he saw it.

Sitting on his desk was a crisp, white envelope with his name scrawled messily across it. He stood there, staring at it. He knew that whatever was in that envelope could not be good for his sanity. He didn't know how he knew, but his intuition told him not to open it.

He'd never really been good at listening to his intuition.

It wasn't sealed. The tab was just folded inside the envelope itself, and he pulled it open cautiously. Nothing jumped out at him, the hackles on the back of his neck didn't stand up, but when the contents of the small envelope fell out into his hand he felt a familiar knot growing in his stomach.

The golden chain was fine, and the small pendant was easily recognizable even in the dim light. It was in the form of a circle, and Cam recognized the Japanese symbol inside it easily; _family_. He gulped as he turned it over in his hands, the gold glinting playfully at him.

Cam put it on, because he could, and because it felt like the right thing to do. He let it settle there for a moment and sighed. It was good to have the familiar weight of something around his neck once more, since he hadn't been wearing his amulet. But it was strange, also, to be wearing something that symbolized the burden that had been thrust upon him, which had wrecked nearly every aspect of his life; his place as a ranger, his understanding of himself, his friendships, and his relationship with his father.

He looked inside the envelope to see if there was anything else there.

There was. It was a tiny note, scrawled in the same messy handwriting that had been on the envelope.

_Cam,  
__Thought you might still want this.  
__Hunter_

Cam swallowed, and blinked to fight back the unbidden tears that welled up in his eyes.

God, what was _wrong_ with him? He thought he was over this.

He wiped at his eyes, refusing to let the tears take hold of him. It had been a nice gesture, and that was all it was. A gesture.

_It's in your mind,  
__It's in your eyes,  
__So it's goodbye again  
__It's way past time,  
__For one last try,  
__So it's goodbye again  
__Goodbye... again_

Hunter didn't belong in his life. Without the bond, they had nothing in common. Cam knew that.

It didn't stop it from being hard.

He'd grown so used to Hunter's presence in his head that there were moments when he still expected it. As the team gathered in the training room he'd catch Hunters eyes and expect to feel the chime, but nothing would come and Cam would feel all the worse for getting his hopes up.

It didn't make any sense. He'd resisted the bond as long as he could because it didn't make any sense. Why would Hunter, of all people, be the person he was supposed to be with? Why had the bond chosen them?

And what was making him miss him now?

He didn't miss him in the technical sense of the word. Hunter had been a totally different person when Cam was inside his mind, and he missed that. He missed the smiles Hunter would reserve especially for him, the way Hunter would whisper jokes that were for his ears only. He missed the way Hunters hand would catch his and the warmth would settle around him, like Hunter's touch was all he needed. He missed the warmth that Hunter's lips sent through his.

It was ridiculous and absurd, but he thought that just maybe… he missed meaning something to someone.

It was strange to think that after all that time of wanting nothing more than to be rid of the bond that had practically ruined his life… now he was missing it.

He was missing the bond. But surely, certainly, he wasn't missing Hunter. Because missing Hunter was completely not an option. He had no reason to miss Hunter.

He'd made his decision. He was doing just fine without him, and he wasn't about to go and start feeling something for him now.

_I'm getting on, what's the use?  
__You know how I get  
__I can't decide which is the truth,  
__At least not yet…  
__I got the feeling that it's you,  
__What can be said, alone in this room?  
__No..._

He tried his hardest to put it out of his mind, because it was over and they'd said so themselves. There was no more bond, and there was no more reason for them to acknowledge each other.

There was still a feeling, though, in the bottom of his heart that told him something was wrong. It wasn't a feeling he liked, because if he acknowledged it then it became real and it would mean something. And he didn't like where that train of thought led him.

He may not be dreaming any longer, but he daydreamed enough to worry himself. He remembered kissing Hunter in the storage shed that first time. He remembered how he'd felt the first time he'd kissed Hunter back, and how accepting the bond had made his life so much easier. He remembered the last time he'd kissed Hunter.

It had been that morning after his nightmare. They'd gotten up, and Cam had changed clothes but Hunter hadn't had any to change in to so he'd waited. As they'd been about to leave his room, Cam couldn't help himself.

He'd pulled Hunter back to him and wound himself into him, suddenly uneasy about leaving him. He'd run his hands through Hunter's soft hair and kissed him and it had _meant something_.

He'd tried to forget about Hunter, because Hunter shouldn't mean anything to him. His mind was proving that had been the wrong way to go about getting over this. He was having trouble deciding which part of himself to listen to; his mind or his heart. When they'd been bonded, that hadn't mattered so much.

Even with the bond, the possibility that maybe being with Hunter hadn't been totally involuntary stayed with him. He couldn't shake the idea that maybe Hunter had meant something to the real Cam, the Cam who wasn't influenced by the bond.

But it was ridiculous, because Cam knew who he was. And yeah, maybe he hid himself from the world, because the world didn't deserve to know him that way. Maybe Hunter was right about that. But Cam also knew that he could be perfectly happy on his own, and he didn't _need_ anyone to survive.

It was what he might _want_ that frightened him.

_It's in your mind  
__It's in your eyes  
__So it's goodbye again  
__It's way past time  
__For one last try  
__So it's goodbye again…_

The nightmare still bothered him. Had it really been his mother he'd spoken with?

"_The future is what you make of it, Cameron."_ She'd said.

What was that supposed to mean?

And if Lothor had gone to all that trouble to break their bond, there must have been a reason. Something must have scared him badly enough to do that, and Cam still hadn't figured out how he'd managed it.

But what about the vision he'd had of himself, scars burning red as he died? Was that one of the things that would never come to pass?

Was he still in as much danger as his mother claimed he was in?

Did it even matter anymore?

Cam didn't have the answers. If he'd ever had any of the answers he wouldn't be feelings so confused and… empty now.

He couldn't explain it. He didn't feel any _different_. It was like the bond had never happened. He could think, he didn't have to feel if he didn't want to, he was completely back to normal. But the bond had left its mark.

The scar on his hand hadn't faded. He ran his fingers over it absently, wondering if he'd carry this small reminder in his skin for the rest of his life. He was still wearing the necklace Hunter had given him, and sometimes it was comforting to know that he hadn't just imaged the whole ordeal.

_Who wants you now?  
__Maybe somebody else.  
__I'll wait around  
__Maybe you'll forget you were ever here,  
__Maybe forget you were ever, never here…_

Hunter hadn't said two words to him since that night. It was a Friday when he spoke, and his voice sounded so foreign in Cam's own ears that he barely registered it was Hunter.

"Do you think Sensei's ever coming back?" He asked as the rangers finished sparring.

Caught off guard, Cam wasn't sure how to respond. He'd looked for his father's DNA pattern everywhere he could think to look, but he'd found nothing. He had no idea where his dad was, or when he planned to return.

"After all," Hunter said, his voice harsh. "We cleaned up our own mess."

Cam swallowed, knowing there was nothing he could say to that that wouldn't justify it. So he nodded and answered as cryptically as he could. "He'll come back when the time is right."

The others laughed, but Hunter didn't even smirk. He just looked away, avoiding Cam's gaze.

It was like they'd never known each other at all. It hurt, being so far apart, because yeah… Cam cared for Hunter. He worried about him. He missed him.

But it would never be the same for them now, and Cam kept reminding himself that the bond had forced them together against their will, and that they had absolutely no obligation to each other without it.

It was how Hunter seemed to feel, because he was cold and withdrawn, and whenever he was around that cold surrounded Cam, rushing in to fill a void he didn't know was there until Hunter was near him again.

_I'm on the outside looking down  
__What do I see?  
__So much of this cold, in the ground  
__Where would I be?  
__Out on the outside, looking down  
__Cover me before you go…_

Cam stood in his bathroom that night, looking at himself in the mirror. He had splashed water on his face and hadn't bothered to wipe it off.

He was in control here. He had proven what he needed to prove. He should be proud of himself.

But he wasn't.

What was it called when everything you'd ever wanted turned out to be nothing like it was supposed to be? Irony? Standing there in the bathroom, staring down his own reflection, it didn't feel like the right word to him now.

Nothing felt right. He couldn't describe it if someone asked him, couldn't find the words to tell them that Hunter had been right. This bond had changed everything he ever was.

And now, alone in his room and in his mind, he realized it might be true.

It wasn't that he'd never believed it in the first place, and it wasn't that he didn't want to believe it. It was just that if he believed it now, if he made that choice…

There was absolutely no going back. And he couldn't undo the damage he had already done.

He wasn't sure he was ready for that. But then, he hadn't been ready for the bond, either.

And it was apparent that neither of them had escaped their bond unchanged. And yes, it had twisted his life around to the point that he barely recognized himself now, but maybe, just maybe… maybe it had been for the better.

And if he was honest with himself, he'd never seen it happening this way. He hadn't seen a lot of things.

_Good thing you can't see everything in the future, then. _

Cam almost grinned at the irony that Hunter's words would be echoing in his mind now, but was immediately saddened by the thought that he would never share his thoughts again.

Sighing to himself, he finally looked away from his reflection. He left his bathroom and lied down on his bed.

He held out his hand, closed his eyes, and tried to imagine Hunter's hand taking his own…

He thought he could almost feel it. Almost.

_You're falling out,  
__I'm falling in,  
__So it's goodbye again  
__It's way past time  
__For one last try  
__So it's goodbye... again  
__So it's goodbye again…_


	14. Birth and Death of a Day

_AN: ... All I have to say is... You people are going to kill me. Please, be gentle._

He knew it could never be a good day when he woke up to an alarm blaring in his ears. He also knew that without his amulet, it was the only way Cybercam could alert him to any of Lothor's activities, but he thought they really should get an intercom installed. 

He ran out of his room and towards command, and he was just taking his place in front of the computer when the rangers came running in. 

"Lothor's at it again." Cam announced to the group at large. "He's in the plaza."

The rangers all held out their morphers, but Cam stopped them with a shout. 

"It's just Lothor. This might be another trap." He warned them, and they all exchanged looks. 

"We can't _not_ go." Hunter told him irately, and Cam tried not to look at him. 

He resigned himself to saying "Just keep your eyes open," before they all morphed and left to battle Lothor. 

Watching the battle play out in front of his eyes on the screen and not being able to actually _do_ anything about it was the downside to not being a ranger. He'd forgotten how unimportant it made him feel, how helpless. 

A knot began twisting in his stomach as he watched the rangers battle. It felt familiar, even if he knew it wasn't. Warning bells were going off in his head and he wanted to call them back now but he knew he couldn't. They were doing their job, protecting the people, fighting evil, and they'd always come back before. 

What felt so horribly foreboding about this time? Cam chewed his lip, and set his sensors to zoom in on Hunter. He watched Hunter kick and twist around and lash out at kelzaks with his staff and he was doing just fine. He turned the scanners on Tori, who was fighting side by side with Blake as the two of them put their well honed elemental combination to good use. Dustin and Shane were battling Lothor, who was pushing them around like it was all fun and games for him. 

It _was _just a game to Lothor, and he was playing them all like pawns. His father, his mother, Marah and Kapri, Hunter, Blake and their parents… they were all just flies caught in his web. Sitting there, watching the first battle he had sat out of since the amulet came to him … he had the strangest feeling. Like it was all connected somehow. All of it, from the day he had helped banish Kiya Watanabe, to the day his cousins had been fostered by him and turned evil, to the day his mother had died, to the day Lothor had broken his bond with Hunter. What had Lothor been trying to do? What did he really think he was going to accomplish all this time? He was like a spider, spinning a web so big even he couldn't see it any longer… and they were all part of it, and all trapped by it. 

It was only a feeling, and a fleeting one at that. Still, Cam reached up to grab the necklace that hung from his neck. It didn't offer much comfort, but it was a reassuring gesture all the same. 

He tried not to panic as two large robots headed for the rangers. Piloted by Marah and Kapri, those zord like things must have been what had kept the two quiet for so long. He sent out the zords before the rangers even had to ask, The wind megazord and the Thunder megazord took on Marah and Kapri's robots in a battle that couldn't end soon enough for Cam. 

It was when Shimazu showed up in another zord that he knew they were outnumbered. They needed the Samurai chopper, but Cam wasn't sure he could still control it without the amulets power. He cursed as Tori, Shane and Dustin called out for more power. He didn't have anything left to send them. 

All he could do was call them back. He knew though, that they wouldn't retreat until they'd damaged the zords beyond repair and nearly killed themselves. He tried anyway. 

"We're out of power disks!" Cam insisted to Shane. "We've got to retreat, it's our only option!" 

"We can't do that, Cam." It was Hunter's voice that answered him defiantly, and he felt a familiar flare of anger in his chest. "Send the chopper, it's our only choice!" 

Cam hesitated. "I don't think I can control it from here." 

"It's our only choice, dude!" Dustin retorted. Angrily, Cam punched the buttons that would launch the chopper and did his best to pilot it from ops. 

It combined with the Wind megazord, and that gave them a slight advantage over Kapri. It wasn't enough to help Blake and Hunter, who were still struggling against Shimazu. His energy diverted to helping keep the Wind megazord from being destroyed, he couldn't watch the thunders every move, and before he knew it both zords were flashing red warnings on his screen. Panicking, Cam managed to eject the Wind rangers from their zord before it fell to the ground. 

He was too late to help the Thunders, and he watched in horror as both zords crashed to the earth in utter disrepair. 

He had stopped breathing as he watched the morpher signals of the Thunder rangers blink out. It took all his willpower just to take a breath, and he reached for the call button with shaky hands. 

"Hunter?" He called, and he was aware how breathy his own voice sounded. "Blake? Come in! Hunter!" 

There was no answer. He turned as he heard three pairs of feet stumbling down the stairs to ops. The morphed winds opened their visors and came into ops holding their wounds. Dustin bent over to place his hands on his knees, and Shane practically collapsed on the table. It was Tori who looked over at Cam, searching his face with worried eyes. 

"Where are Hunter and Blake?" She asked, her voice as shaky as Cam felt. 

He gulped, and it was a good thing he was sitting down because he thought his legs might have come out from under him if he'd said it standing. "Their zord went down. I… couldn't get to them in time." He whispered. Tori rushed forward to look at the computer screen. 

Cam looked with her. The morpher signals were flickering, but he couldn't get a lock on either of the Thunders and there was still no response to Cam's frantic call. 

"We have to go back!" Tori said as she turned and headed back for the door. 

Shane put a hand out to stop her. "Call them again." He ordered Cam. 

Cam pressed the call button, and swallowed hard. "Hunter, Blake, come in." He pleaded, and in his mind he sent out an urgent call to Hunter, knowing he couldn't hear him. _Where are you?_

There was no answer. Not on the comm, nor in his mind. They couldn't be… gone. They'd always come back before. They had to be alright. Hunter had to be alright. If he wasn't…

"Marah and Kapri and Shimazu are still out there!" Dustin said to Tori as she headed for the door. "They'll squash us like bugs without the zords." 

"We can't leave them!" Tori insisted, stopping to give the boys a fierce look. "They'd come after us." 

Shane turned to Cam. "What about the teleporter?" 

"I can't get a lock on them!" Cam shook his head as he typed quickly away at the computer, but there was too much interference from the zords. 

He couldn't get a lock on their morphers, couldn't find their life signs to teleport, couldn't hail them on the comm… by all reasonable and practical explanations…

They were gone. 

"Who died?" 

Cam turned at the sound of the voice, relief washing over him. He watched in slow motion as Tori ran towards the door to help Hunter carry Blake in, and then Hunter released his brother to the rest of the rangers and stood there, looking for all the world as though he'd just come back from the dead. 

Cam didn't even realize he was moving until he was there. His legs acted on their own and carried him to where Hunter stood, giving him a confused look. Cam couldn't say anything, couldn't even form the words he wanted to say in his mind. Even if he could, he knew Hunter couldn't hear him. 

Cam pulled Hunter to him and wrapped his arms around him roughly. He felt Hunter's chest push against his, his breathing shallow. He could feel Hunter's breath against his ear. He could feel Hunter's heartbeat through his own chest. All of these things gave Cam to proof he needed. _Hunter was okay._

He felt Hunter's arms go around him and Hunter buried his head in Cam's neck. There was no jolt of energy as their skin touched, no flash of light, no bond holding them together. But the relief was there. The warmth that came not from the bond they had shared but from _Hunter_ settled around him. The rest of the world slowed down, and all that mattered was Hunter's familiar arms wrapped around him, tight and comforting. 

He could feel Hunter's strength giving out around him, but he would hold him up if he had to. Hunter let out a shaky breath against Cam's neck, and Cam leaned his head against Hunter's. 

They were making a scene, and he knew that. He needed to see to Blake's injuries, but he couldn't seem to tear himself away from Hunter. He had thought he didn't care about him anymore, and he had been fooling himself all along. Bond or no bond, something had changed in him during their time together. He could feel it in Hunter's arms, in his breathing, in his own desperation not to let go. It sent out a reassuring message that Cam didn't know he'd been waiting to hear; _he was not alone._

He could hear Tori calling for help, and gently he began to pry himself away from Hunter. Hunter let him go, obviously censing the urgency in the situation. Had they been anywhere else, Cam would have kissed him. But here, when someone was in trouble, and with everyone watching, it just didn't feel right. 

So he backed away, catching the glimmer of hope in Hunter's eyes and giving him a tiny nod. Hunter's mouth formed into a familiar fond grin, and Cam turned away to see to Blake. 

The younger thunder had busted three ribs and fractured his ankle, but he was alive. Cam made him dimorph, and Blake sat there as Cam got him some heavy pain killers. There wasn't much he could do for the ribs, but he braced the fracture with Hunter hovering over his shoulder. 

"I can't believe we lost the zords." Tori was saying as she held Blake's hand. 

"They're not totally gone, right Cam?" Dustin asked him, but Cam couldn't answer him. 

He hadn't even been paying attention to the zords when the fear that Hunter and Blake had been killed had seized him. He had no idea how badly damaged they were. 

"Man," Shane sighed, rubbing his eyes. "I wish Sensei was here." 

Cam felt a pang of guilt at that, and found himself glancing up at Hunter in hopes of sharing a commiserating look. 

"About that…" Cam began, but he stopped as he caught sight of Hunter. Something was wrong with Hunter's arm. Of course he was hurt too. He'd crashed in the same zord his brother had. He was babying it, Cam could tell, holding it lightly and there was just something wrong with it. "You're hurt." 

Hunter just looked at him and shook his head. "I'm fine." He said evenly, but Cam knew what he saw. 

He stood and held out his hand. "Give me your arm." He commanded. 

Hunter looked at him for a long moment, as thought debating whether or not to comply. Cam returned his stare evenly, looking directly into Hunters eyes for the first time since they'd been unbonded. Hunter twitched right before the alarm went off again. 

Cam cursed and dropped Hunter's gaze, heading for the computer. He brought up the display, and all the rangers grimaced. Kapri, Marah and Shimazu were standing atop their zords, celebrating the demise of the ranger's zords. On the ground, Kelzak furies ran amuck, tearing apart the wreckage of the zords. 

"We have to go back." Hunter told them. "Even without the zords, we still have the gliders and the Glider Cycle. We can at least take down the furies." 

"You're not going." Cam told him, as though there was no room for argument. 

"Yes, I am." Hunter argued anyway. 

"You're hurt." Cam insisted, but Hunter just shook his head. 

"Blake's hurt. I'm fine." He turned to the winds. "Are we going or not?" 

All three of the winds stood and retrieved their helmets. "Let's go." Shane agreed. 

As they turned, Cam caught the arm that wasn't hurt. Hunter paused, glanced down at Cam's hand on his arm and looked up at him. 

Cam looked at him for a moment, and then let his arm go. "Be careful." 

Hunter nodded, and reached down to catch Cam's hand quickly. No jolt of energy, no chime, nothing tugging him towards Hunter… just Hunter's hand in his, and some reassurance that he wasn't quite as lost as he'd thought he'd been. 

"Oh, and when we get back," Shane drawled as he, Tori and Dustin stood in the doorway, "We're so having a nice long chat about _that_." He gave their clasped hands a meaningful look, and Hunter dropped his hand without another word. 

The four of them headed up and out the stairs, and Cam heard Blake chuckle from where he was sitting. Looking over, he found Blake with his head back and his eyes closed, but an amused grin played across his face. 

"What?" Cam asked, knowing he probably didn't want to know. 

Blake shook his head. "Life is just… strange. You know?" He opened his eyes and stared over at Cam. It occurred to Cam that Blake was a little high on pain killers, so he just nodded appreciatively. 

"Yeah," he agreed amiably. "I know." 

Cam devoted all his attention to giving the rangers more power on the ground as they fought the Kelzaks. Blake was drifting in and out behind him, and every now and then he'd make a comment about what was happening or try to tell Cam what to do. 

After about 3 times of Cam telling him to stop distracting him, Blake listened and kept his mouth shut. 

Cam felt like his fingers were going to fall off. He was loosing it, and the rangers weren't doing much better than before. Lothor had stepped up the game, and not only were they outnumbered, they were outgunned and out of strength to keep fighting. 

It wouldn't be long now before Lothor had destroyed all of their artillery, or worse… Cam couldn't think it. They would find a way to fight him back. They had to. They always had before. 

Tori was fighting Kapri with a ferocity that Cam had never seen in her before. She was standing alone just fine, which left Shane and Dustin to take on Marah. Shane was giving it his all, but Dustin was holding back. Cam wanted to do something to make Dustin fight, but he wasn't out there and he couldn't do anything else for him. Distracting him was the worst idea Cam could think of right now. 

Hunter was battling Lothor. The thought of it made Cam swallow hard, and he had to focus on his breathing just to keep from passing out. He was still wearing the necklace, which gave him some protection from Lothor's dark powers. It couldn't, however, protect him from Lothor's hand to hand weapons, like the ribbed sword he was currently wielding. 

He had just barely missed Hunter twice now, and Hunter was getting sloppy. One foot placed wrong, one instinct or reflex taken the wrong way and… He had to get out there, had to help him. Hunter couldn't win this fight on his own and he knew it all at once and all at one it was too late for him to do or think anything else. 

Time slowed down as he heard Tori call out to Hunter, and Hunter twisted his head ever so slightly when he thought he was safe but he wasn't. Lothor's blade drove like a stake into Cam's heart as it pierced Hunter squarely in the stomach. 

Without warning Cam screamed and tumbled over in agony. His stomach was on fire, an aching shooting pain striking him like it was his own. He clenched at his abdomen to stop the burning pain it sent rushing through him, felt the involuntary tears stream down his face as the indescribable pain ate away at him, tried to breathe and couldn't. He felt the world whirling around him as he tried to make sense of what was happening and couldn't. The pain was too intense, to excruciating, to unbearable that all he could do was scream and cry and pray… 

And then nothing. 

The pain stopped as if on command, and Cam thought he must have died. But he hadn't died, because he could see Blake's face above him, shouting in anger and he could feel Blake shaking his shoulders but he couldn't _feel_ it. He couldn't _feel_ anything. It was as though all sensation had left his body, and he was only aware of the aching in his heart. 

It was an aching unlike anything he'd ever felt before, an aching that made him feel as though he were about to die. His heart ached slow and steady, the pain growing as time began to go back to normal around him. He was still crying, the tears pouring out of his eyes like someone had flipped a switch inside him. 

And suddenly, it all clicked into place. 

He was dying. He had no reason to be dying, but in his heart he could feel it. He felt himself wanting to let go even now, even with Blake's desperate face hovering above him, pleading for him to save Hunter…

Hunter. Hunter was dead. And Cam was dying because of it. 

He lifted his hand into his vision and saw with profound calm that the scar on his palm was _burning red_. 

_Hunter,_ Cam found himself calling. _We were never apart, after all. _


	15. What You Go Home To

_AN: I think the funnest part of this chapter was having Tori sum the entire story up in less than a paragraph. Come on people, you didn't really think I'd kill him, did you? :P At last, a chapter that answers questions instead of giving you more! Hope you enjoy, and feed the author on your way out!_

They hadn't been separated. The bond was still intact, somehow. Cam knew it, had to know it because why else could he have felt the pain of Hunter being stabbed? How could he have shared Hunter's dying breathes? Why couldn't be feel anything at all anymore?

Time snapped back into fluid motion, and he was being shaken by Blake, who was crying. Cam stood unsteadily and rushed to the computer, where he could see Hunter's still form lying on the ground as Lothor bent down and yanked a silver chain from his neck.

Cam hit the emergency button and locked onto Hunter's morpher and teleported him into Ops. He panicked, because if Hunter was really gone than Cam had nothing left, and no wonder he wanted to die because he couldn't feel _anything_. He rushed to Hunter's limp form, and bit back an anguished cry as he saw the blood pouring from Hunter's wound. Cam lifted off the Crimson ranger's helmet, and tossed it aside, taking Hunter's face in his hands.

Without even having to check for a pulse, Cam knew. He had known the second it had happened. Hunter was gone.

Cam couldn't let that happen. He'd just gotten Hunter back, and he wasn't about to loose him now. Looking at Hunter's open wound, Cam knew what he had to do.

Blake was still shouting behind him, but Cam held out his hand and yelled, "I need something sharp. Now!"

Blake froze, and then hurriedly reached down and flipped open his cargo pocket. He tossed Cam a small switchblade, and Cam didn't think twice as he opened the blade and gripped it with his palm.

His palm was already glowing red as Cam sliced it open and discarded the knife. He felt the blood ooze out over his knuckled and braced himself for what he was about to do.

He placed his hand on Hunter's wound, pressed down with both hands, and waited.

Nothing happened.

"No." Cam let the word out on a stifled cry, and he fought the tears. It had to work, or Hunter would die. "In life and in death, remember?!" Cam found himself shouting at Hunter's still form, recalling words from the prophecy. "Please…"

The tears poured out of his eyes involuntarily, falling onto his hands pressed into Hunter's bloody gut.

"Please work," Cam pleaded quietly, as the tears mingled down into the blood. Then he shouted as loudly as his body would allow him, "Work!"

Just like that he felt it. He saw the light, felt it blinding him and every muscle in his body was on fire. It shot through him from his hands into his head and down to his feet, and he couldn't move or breathe. He felt as though he might die, but all he could do was thank god that it wasn't the end. The light got so bright that colors exploded before his eyelids, and he screamed for some kind of release that wouldn't come.

It was the second longest moment of his life as he waited in some kind of limbo for the blood magic to work and release him, but finally it ended and he could hear Hunter's first gasping breathes.

Hunter was breathing. Cam let himself breathe in relief as the agonizing pain receded, and he felt a ball of warmth burst in his chest as he listened to Hunter breathe beside him.

"You're an idiot." Hunter told him the moment he had taken in enough air to do so. He was still lying on the floor, but his hand had come up and grabbed Cams so fiercely that Cam thought he might squeeze it off.

"I wasn't going to let you die." Cam told him, as he leaned down over the blond ninja. He could feel Hunter in his mind once more, feel the bond renewed and alive and was relived and exhausted and he felt _alive_ again.

He felt Hunter reach up to kiss him, and the feel of Hunter's lips against his own was the most welcome feeling he'd ever known.

_You shouldn't have done that,_ Hunter whispered to him in his mind. It was familiar, and the surrealism that had become so normal made him want to laugh.

_I had to do something,_ Cam argued back as they kissed. It wasn't a hungry kiss, it was a kiss of relief and fondness and all the emotions they'd both been bottling up since Lothor had broken their bond.

Hunter pulled away from him only slightly to breathe, but his blue eyes locked with Cam's. "You could have died trying to save me."

Cam knew that was true, but he didn't care. Hunter was alive, and that was all that mattered. In response to Hunter's admonition, Cam did the only thing he could.

He finally just told Hunter the truth.

"Without you, there was no reason for me to live."

Hunter smiled, and he kissed him again, and Cam kissed him back and it was the best moment of his entire life.

Until he heard Tori's voice in the background asking, "Okay, what did we miss?"

"Apparently a lot." Dustin added.

"I'm so confused, I think I must be dreaming." He heard Blake say to the group at large. "Only I'm in an excruciating amount of pain, so I know I'm awake."

That made Hunter pulled away from him, and he grinned up at Cam as he answered his brother. "Bro, you've got no idea what excruciating is."

This effectively drew the attention to them, and Cam cleared his throat and sat up as his cheeks burned. He made the mistake of letting go of Hunter's hand, and the world spun around him. He head ached and his hand burned and he couldn't see straight. He reached blindly for Hunter's hand and found it, and the world resettled itself around them.

Hunter gave him a look of warning. "Don't do that again."

Cam nodded. "Promise."

Hunter smirked, but he didn't move any further.

"Can you sit up?" Cam asked him.

Hunter looked thoughtful for a moment, and then looked back at Cam as though embarrassed. _Help?_

_Like you have to ask,_ Cam scolded. He reached out and pulled Hunter towards him. Once he was sitting, Hunter let out a breath and leaned against Cam's chest. Instead of pushing him away as the prying gazes of the other rangers observed them, Cam rested his head on top of Hunter's and sighed gratefully.

_If I forget to tell you later,_ Hunter teased, _thanks for saving me._

It was a beautiful moment that Cam would never forget. It was a moment that about a month ago he'd never have expected to share, but here and now he was grateful for all of it. He felt like an idiot for ever having been so stupid. Hunter didn't care, so Cam didn't either, and he let himself enjoy the grace of that one moment.

And then Shane ruined it by saying, "Lucy, you' got some 'splainin' to do!" And everyone dissolved into exhausted giggles.

* * *

"Okay, so let me try and get this straight, even though that sounds impossible to do after everything you've just told us," Tori was saying as the rangers sat in Ninja Ops a while later.

Blake was lying down on the table with an ice pack. Tori and Dustin were tangled together in a cushion pile they'd made and were somehow using each other as pillows, a comfort level that only came from knowing someone as long as they had, and Shane was sitting on the opposite side of the table with an ice pack to his head. Cam and Hunter were leaning against each other on the small couch as they blatantly cuddled in front of the entire group while they relayed the story.

They'd gone through everything as best they could, trying to leave out some of their more personal moments. The other rangers had listened without asking a lot of questions, and he thought Tori had looked a little smug when they'd mentioned becoming involved with one another.

Tori continued. "What your saying is, that day when you guys made that huge flash of light linked you together somehow and gave you dreams that showed you guys actually meeting when you were little kids and somehow that's when this all started. Back when you were like, 4. And this ancient scroll somehow relates to you guys being the saviors of humanity, and by some unexplainable miracle you can heal each other, the catch being that if one of you dies the other dies which is probably why Lothor tried to kill you separately. The point, though, is that by some weird and freaky coincidence, you guys managed to make the bond come alive and now you're stuck with each other, but hey it works out 'cause you're romantically involved anyway." Tori paused, pretend to count something out on her fingers and then looked back at them. "That about cover it?"

Cam blinked at her, but Hunter sniggered and Cam could feel him looking up at him. Turning his head, he saw Hunter smirking at him.

"I see why you didn't want to tell them." Hunter teased. "That _does_ sound crazy."

Cam shook his head and decided not to answer. He didn't have the energy to try and defend his sanity, and was surprised Hunter had enough energy to make fun of him.

"So, is this the question and answer part of the day, then?" Blake wanted to know. "Cause I have a few."

Cam traded looks with Hunter, who answered evenly. "The odds that we'll be able to answer them are slim to none, but go right ahead."

"What the hell happened with Sensei?"

The question stopped them all, but the rest of the rangers looked to them eagerly.

Cam gulped. "I'm not so sure anymore." He answered, and he heard Blake scoff.

"I think he knew something, but didn't want to tell us." Hunter interrupted. "Or maybe it was not knowing what was going on that drove him crazy. Either way, he handled it just as badly as we did."

"Why did he leave like that, though?" Tori continued. "There had to be a reason."

Cam closed his eyes. "He offered us his help, and told us he wouldn't be offering again. When we didn't tell him, he told us to clean up our own mess." Cam sighed, rubbed his eyes with his free hand and gave Hunter's hand a squeeze simultaneously. "I'd never seen him so cold before."

"Yeah," Hunter agreed, coming to his rescue. "Disappointed and distant the guy can do, but cold and angry was a new look for him."

The rangers were silent as they pondered this, but finally Tori looked over at them sadly. "Why _didn't_ you tell us?"

Hunter was irritably silent when he didn't have to be, and Cam was forced to just grunt out the truth. "I was afraid of what you'd think if you knew about… us. The weird powers and freaky dreams were one thing, but the rest of it…" Cam paused, unsure how to properly articulate his uncertainty of his place on the team. "I didn't want you to know because I didn't trust you all enough not to hurt me. And I'm sorry, if it means anything."

The silence could really take things either way, Cam decided as he waited. Hunter was at his side, calm and quiet and content, and if Cam didn't know any better he'd say he was asleep. Cam couldn't blame him; the utter exhaustion of bringing someone back to life was incredible, and he couldn't imagine what it must be like to be the one who was brought back.

"Boys." He heard Tori mutter at last as she put her head down.

"Apology accepted, dude." Dustin's voice came back a moment later. "Cause seriously, ya know, you were kinda driving us crazy for a while."

"The sheer stupidity it would take to think that things would be any different is beyond me." Tori was complaining. She held up her morpher for all of them to see. "What does this mean, guys? I'll tell you what it means. This means _family_. It's 'a for better or for worse' kind of deal. After everything we've been through, isn't it about time we started trusting each other?"

Cam felt bad, but beside him he heard Hunter say, "It is."

"From now on, no more secrets." Tori told them all. "We can't keep things from each other and expect to be a team." She looked over at Cam and dropped her wrist at last. "I can't believe you thought we'd treat you differently."

Shane sniggered behind her. "Yeah, 'cause after all the freaky things we've seen, you guys being a couple of homo's is the least of our worries."

"Shane!" Tori tossed a pillow at him, but he just laughed and Cam felt Hunter chuckling beside him, and it was okay. They were okay. They were all okay.

"Hey, if we're not keeping secrets, does that mean Blake has to admit how much he likes you?" Dustin asked point blank, and Blake objected immediately as Tori blushed scarlet.

"Blake is in no condition to be making any such statements. He's clearly far too drugged to be trusted." Hunter chipped in from beside him, and Tori immediately agreed and tried to change the subject.

"So, back to the question and answer session!" Tori exclaimed as she smacked Dustin's arm and he tickled her in return.

"Oh, oh! Pick me!" Shane's hand shot up in like a preschooler, and Cam rolled his eyes.

"Shane." He said to calm them, and it seemed to work though Tori was still giggling a little from embarrassment.

"I'm still a little bit confused on the whole Lothor breaking the bond thing. What was the point of that if it wasn't really broken?" Shane asked, and Cam shrugged.

"I haven't had time to even begin to think about it yet." He told them, leaning his head atop Hunter's and closing his eyes.

"I think it's obvious." Blake said from his spot on the table. Everyone's attention turned to him and he seemed to fidget a little. "He wanted you apart so he could defeat one of you. He knows together you're too strong to beat, but divided you fall and all that. Maybe breaking your amulet was just an added bonus, or something."

Cam was silent as he pondered this, and it was possible that Lothor's plan had been to kill both himself and Hunter by killing Hunter. But that meant…

"Lothor doesn't know I survived." Hunter lifted his head as the epiphany struck, and Cam looked over at him in awe. "Which gives us the upper hand."

"If Lothor thinks your dead- if he thinks you're both dead -then he's celebrating right now. He has no idea what happened." Shane added, catching their train of thought.

"Which means this is the perfect time for us to attack him. Maybe we can free the students!" Dustin exclaimed happily.

"Hold on a minute." Tori held up her hand as though reading Cam's mind. "I don't think now is a perfect time for anything. I don't know about you guys, but I'm exhausted, and I'm guessing that if I take my exhaustion and multiply it by ten then that's about how Cam and Hunter are feeling. Besides the fact that Blake's ribs are broken and we need to get him to the hospital. Now is a perfect time for taking a break."

"But we-" Shane tried to argue, but Tori was having none of it.

"Lothor will still think they're dead tomorrow." She pointed out, and the others came to a mutual agreement that yes, they could take the rest of the night off.

"Before we disperse, does anyone else have anything they'd like to share?" Dustin acted like he was holding court, which was kind of amusing in and of itself.

"I really shoulda seen this coming." Blake laughed, mostly at himself it seemed, and glared over at Hunter. "We have got to work on our communication."

Cam glanced over at Hunter, and felt the pang of guilt from him. Something about Blake's words though… made Cam wonder if Hunter had been completely truthful with him.

"I'll make it a priority." Hunter told him, and there was no teasing note in his voice. "Sorry, bro."

"We're cool, man." Blake told him. "But next time it involved _our_ parents, I'll kill you if I'm not the first person you tell."

"That sounded just serious enough to not be a joke." Tori chided as she smacked Blake's foot. "Somebody's getting grumpy."

"If you'd had your zord destroyed with you inside it, had your ribs busted and watched your brother nearly die-"

Cam cut him off. "Not nearly die. He was dead." He couldn't help himself, really. It had scared the shit out of him, and it seemed only fair to set the record straight.

"Yeah, well." Blake might have shrugged if he'd been upright. "I'm just saying, you'd be grumpy by now too."

Hunter was sending him reassuring chimes in his mind that he was alive, and for now that was all Cam could ask for.

"I think we'd better get you to a doctor." Tori was telling Blake.

The rest of the rangers stood to help Blake, and Hunter began to stand but he wouldn't let go of Cam's hand so Cam stood too. He didn't know if the fallout would still be as bad as it had been earlier, but he didn't particularly want to find out either.

To his surprise, Dustin came over and hugged first Hunter, and then Cam. When he finished he looked over at them and said, "I'm glad you guys are okay."

He turned away and walked out like it hadn't happened, and Cam just shook his head. Dustin was really _strange_ sometimes.

"What are you going to tell them at the hospital?" Cam wanted to know as Tori and Shane helped Blake up.

Blake exchanged a look with Hunter and they both grinned. "Motocross injury."

Cam rolled his eyes. "Should have guessed."

"Really, you should have. You're in my head, for Pete's sake." Hunter joked, and Cam just smirked at him because yeah, it was true.

"Don't forget guys," Shane reminded as they reached the stairs. "Don't leave Ops. We don't want Lothor to know your okay."

"No worries. We won't forget." Hunter assured him. "Take care of Blake for me."

"No worries." Tori echoed him. "It's what I'm good at by now."

"What, taking care of boys who have crushes on you?" Shane teased, and Tori just brushed it off.

"No, taking care of boys who think they're emotionally and physically indestructible." Tori answered with a grin.

"Know many of those, do you?" Cam asked her.

Tori shot him one of her sweetest smiles. "I know 5 of them."

They all laughed, and the three rangers headed up the stairs and away for the night.

As soon as they were gone Hunter was kissing him. This was a hungry kiss, and Cam accepted it for everything that it was. It was satisfying and fulfilling and everything a kiss should be. He kissed Hunter like he'd never kissed him before because this time he knew what it felt like to loose him. He held onto him for dear life, and the two of them kissed that way until their energy was balanced and flowing between them, holding them together. When their lips finally parted, the first thing out of Hunter's mouth made Cam kiss him again.

"I missed you so badly I couldn't see straight." He said, and Cam kissed him again gently, sorely.

It was an apology in and of itself.

_It wasn't the bond,_ Hunter continued as they kissed. _At least, not that I could tell. I just missed you. _

They separated, and with their foreheads leaned together Cam whispered to him. "We were never unbonded. Whatever Lothor did, he couldn't break the bond."

Hunter nodded, and he tilted his head back. Cam kissed his neck gently, and he felt Hunter panic and stiffen. He reached up to his neck, and Cam grabbed his hand.

"Lothor took it." Cam told him. "After he… killed you. He yanked the necklace off before I could teleport you back."

Hunter fumed, and Cam did his best to comfort him. "He's going to pay for all of this. Everything he's done. We're gonna get him." Hunter looked to him with pleaded eyes. "Right?"

Cam just nodded. "Yeah. We'll get your moms necklace back, Hunter. We'll get Lothor."

Hunter nodded and sighed, and Cam hugged him tightly. Pulling away, Cam took his hands and led him back to his bedroom.

There would be time for everything else in the morning. Right now, they had other things to talk about.


	16. With Tired Souls, They Slept

_AN: I'M BACK! Back at last! Finally, after months of waiting, I have my computer back in full working order! I'm so freaking happy! And, I bet you are too, because that means that the exciting conclusion of Before We Met is only another few chapters away! I can't believe how long it's been, but gosh I'm sorry. Just know that it was, indeed, out of my hands. In case your wondering, yes, I did go back and change all the chapter titles. I like these better, especially for the epicness this story has become. As always, Feed the Author, lord knows by now I'm starving to death._

_AN2: I have posted the NC-17 version of this chapter on a site because for some reason using the DocX is too complicated. So, don't ask anymore, just go here: ** punkpinkpower .tripod. com/ beforewemet / **Simply take out the spaces. Thanks, and enjoy._

It amazed Cam how quickly he felt Hunters energy deteriorate. The walk back down the hall to Cam's bedroom alone has drained him completely, and Cam thought the only reason he wasn't passed out was because Hunter was drawing most of his energy from him. The bond allowed them to share everything, it seemed. Even life-force.

He sat Hunter down on his bed and felt the strain on his energy lessen immediately. He ran his hand through Hunter's soft hair, kissed his cheek, and went to pull away.

Hunters hand tightened on his immediately. _Don't! _He commanded, his voice panicked.

"I was only going to get you a clean shirt." Cam whispered back to him, and reached out to tug on Hunter's torn jersey. "One without blood on it, maybe."

_You said you wouldn't let go,_ Hunter reminded. He sounded like a child pouting. _You promised. _

_Okay, okay,_ Cam soothed as best he could. _I won't let go._

Hunters grip on his hand didn't lighten up, like he thought maybe he might be lying. His eyes were squeezed shut, and Cam kneeled down on the floor in front of him and waited.

Hunters eyes opened at last, but they looked tired. Cam reached up with his other hand to stroke Hunter's cheek, but he stopped halfway as a vision of Hunter's face, pale and lifeless, flickered across his mind. It was strange to think that had been only hours before, and he had to remind himself that Hunter was alive and with him right now.

Hunter reached for his hand and pulled it the rest of the way to his face, and he leaned into the caress, looking at Cam with warm eyes and a noticeably warmer expression. Apparently, it was his turn to be the soother.

Give and take, Cam thought. That's what they had to do to keep their energy from crashing. Thinking about it, he supposed that they were sharing his life energy between the two of them now, and he wondered if Hunter's would replenish itself on its own. If it didn't, they would be in a very difficult situation. They had always gotten better from their smaller experiments, but this was nothing like that. He wondered how long it would be before they would know what to expect.

"Stop thinking so much." Hunter chided. He turned his head to kiss Cam's hand. "This is sensory time, not time for thinking."

Cam couldn't keep a grin off his face as Hunter kissed his hand again, and Cam sat up taller to press his forehead to Hunter's. It was, admittedly, an awkward position, but he wasn't willing to move once he got himself there.

"I'm sorry." Hunter whispered to him as they held each others faces. _I was reckless._

_No shit,_ Cam agreed, and he felt Hunter let out a puff of amusement. _This isn't funny. You got yourself killed, Hunter. Killed. Not nearly killed, not almost killed, but Killed. You were… You… _

"Shhh," Hunter shushed him, but Cam shook his head and pulled away. When he found he couldn't look at him, he laid his head down on Hunter's lap and continued. His voice was muffled by Hunter's legs, but he knew Hunter would hear what he said.

"You were dead before I could get to you. I… I felt…" Cam gulped, unsure he could go on but knowing he had to make Hunter understand this somehow. "I felt you dying."

_Cam,_ Hunter's voice pleaded in his mind. He didn't like hearing so much pain in Cam's voice. Cam paused, took a deep breathe, and tried to calm himself.

"It wasn't just… a physical feeling, Hunter. It was like I could feel my own heart stop beating… when yours did." Cam felt Hunter's hand on his head, stroking his hair as comfortingly as he could. "I'd never felt so alone in all my life."

That did it. Hunter was hauling him up by the shirt to bring their lips together, and Cam could do nothing by obey. He wanted what comfort Hunter could offer him, he wanted the reassurance that Hunter was not dead, and he was not alone any longer.

He wanted to be told he never would be again.

Hunter kissed him deeply, caressing his neck and with their mouths safely locked together he finally let go of Cam's hand and wrapped it around his waste. He pulled him closer until the only option Cam had was to straddle Hunter's legs as they sat on the edge of the bed. He didn't feel nearly as awkward about it as he thought he should have, and that was a bit unnerving. He found himself wrapping his arms around his partner and pressing closer to him, like he couldn't get close enough.

When Hunter's hand went under his shirt he knew he had better focus and finish saying whatever it was he wanted to say before Hunter had his way with him.

That made Hunter laugh. Not giggle in amusement, not sigh with a smirk, but downright laugh, so hard that Cam could feel it resonating in his own chest.

"I heard that!" Hunter unwrapped his arms just slightly to find Cam's ticklish spots and prod him a little. "_My way with you?_ You think I'm some kind of deviant, don't you?"

Cam laughed with him, catching his hands to keep from being tickled. "I call 'em like I see 'em." Cam told him, and Hunter rolled his eyes. Hunter kissed him again, but this was a quick, playful kiss, and Cam couldn't help but smile with him.

"If anyone's going to be taken advantage of here it's going to be me." Hunter stated clearly, and Cam guffawed.

"How do you figure?" He wrapped Hunters arms back around him, and went to mess up Hunter's hair.

"Look at the state I'm in!" Hunter objected as he gave Cam's midsection a squeeze. "I'm the weak one here! And I'm younger. You are clearly going to be the one doing all the seducing here."

"That is a very bad argument." Cam grumbled, but he reached down and kissed Hunter again, before pulling away to stroke his hair some more.

_Maybe,_ Hunter agreed easily as he closed his eyes and let himself feel Cam's hands. _Keep doing that and there won't be any fight left in me at all._

Cam grinned, and was about to reply when he stopped cold and pulled his hand out of Hunter's hair. There was blood on his finger. He gulped, knowing that any wound that Hunter had had been healed by the bond, but unable to keep from thinking about just how badly Hunter had been hurt… how much pain he must have been in…

"Hey," Hunter reached up to grab Cam's hands and pulled them together under his chin. "I'm okay, Cam. Don't. Don't think that. I'm fine."

"You were gay, weren't you?" Cam blurted out, unable to stop himself. Hunter just stared at him, dumbfounded. So Cam clarified, "Before the bond."

Hunter looked away, and Cam had his answer. "Does it matter?"

"It means you lied to me and I couldn't tell." Cam intoned unhappily, beginning to pull away from Hunter.

Hunter's grip around his waist stopped him. "You weren't exactly embracing the bond. It made it easier for me to read you than it did for you to read me. I'm sorry." He added, like an afterthought.

Cam shook his head, and Hunter pulled his head down to press their foreheads together.

"I was going to tell you." Hunter said, and this time Cam knew it was the truth, which was slightly comforting. "If I'd told you in the beginning, would you have ever let me close?"

Cam tilted his head back and sighed, because Hunter was right. He'd had good reasons. Still, something bothered him.

"How did Blake know?" Cam wanted to know.

Hunter shrugged. "He's my brother. I never dated girls. He had plenty of reason to suspect. I guess I'm not surprised he figured it out."

_Apparently not_, Cam thought, and Hunter just grinned at him a little bit. _So, how many boyfriends have you had?_

_Just one,_ Hunter thought at him as he reached up to kiss him, and just like that he knew Hunter was talking about him.

_I'm your boyfriend?_ Cam grinned into their kiss, and Hunter pulled him closer.

_No, I guess your right,_ Hunter agreed happily. _Boyfriend isn't a very fitting term for you._

He pulled away and caught Cam's eye, and there was an intensity in that gaze that Cam adored and feared.

_I think the term Soul Mate might be more appropriate. _Hunter kissed him again after he said it, maybe to keep Cam from seeing the blush he could feel growing in Hunter's cheeks.

Cam let himself be kissed for several moments, working up his nerve. He kissed back and felt Hunter run his hand through Cam's hair and work at his neck gently. He enjoyed the feeling of being wanted, and needed, and kissed Hunter as easily as he could. Finally, he pulled away only an inch and took a breath.

It was not the most crucial or defining moment in their relationship, Cam knew. But for him to feel like he could say it and mean it was a big step for him, and he knew Hunter knew that. But he did mean it, and the second the words escaped his mouth he felt a ball of warmth burst inside his chest and finally, he felt like he was home.

"I love you." Cam whispered. A euphoric grin spread across Hunter's face, and he gently kissed Cam's lips before repeating the phrase back to him.

"I love you, too." Hunter held him close, and they shared a moment of peace together, expressing that love in their silent shared feelings. "I always will."

They kissed again, gentle and smooth, happy and warm. It was the easiest thing Cam had ever done, and the hardest all at the same time, loving Hunter Bradley. It had nearly destroyed his life, but it had given him the chance for a new one, a better one. One where he could love and be loved, and at this moment, Cam cared neither for his father nor the life he was leaving behind. All he cared about was the potential this new life held for him, and for the first time in years, he looked forward to tomorrow.

_Promise me something,_ Hunter pleaded with him. Cam pulled away and nodded.

_Anything,_ he promised.

Hunter smiled, and he cupped Cam's face with his hand before answering. "No more trying to break our bond."

Cam laughed, and Hunter laughed, and they kissed once more, all cares forgotten and totally at one with each other.

He felt Hunter lean back a little bit, and he before he knew it Hunter had pulled him down onto the bed with him. Their feet were hanging off in an awkward position, so they readjusted to lie down together, tangled in each others arms.

Hunter kissed him some more, and they lay there, content but not completely comfortable and finally Hunter tugged at Cam's shirt with a distasteful look.

"I want this off you." He decided, and Cam laughed.

"I'm sure." Cam teased, and Hunter grinned back at him sheepishly.

"I just mean, you know, wouldn't want to loose skin contact while we sleep." Hunter admitted, and Cam paused to consider that. What would happen if they stopped touching while they slept? Would they wake, or would their energy just drain until…

Without a second thought, Cam reached over to take Hunter's shirt off. Hunter was grinning victoriously, but Cam just rolled his eyes. They lifted Hunter's shirt over his head and tossed it aside, and Hunter unbuttoned Cam's shirt and pushed it back over his shoulders. Cam had to sit up so they could get it off him, and their bare chests pushed together. Hunter's intake of breathe was all he needed, and after they tossed his shirt aside Cam pushed his weight against Hunter and flipped him onto his back.

Hunter laughed, but Cam kissed his collarbone carefully as he thought, _Loosing skin contact, pfft. Not much chance of that happening, I'm guessing._

Hunter grinned, and this time it was Cam who found himself on his back as Hunter rolled them over. He no longer looked bashful in the slightest. With Hunter braced above him, Cam had a very clear view of the new scar that lie across Hunter's midsection. He reached out instinctively to touch it, to run is fingers over the pink tissue that he'd created.

Hunter shivered when he did it and he caught Cam's eye. Cam gently pressed his scarred hand to Hunter's freshly healed wound, and a shock of warm energy shot through them both.

Hunter couldn't hold himself up any longer, and Cam shouldn't have let him try in the first place. He held him for a moment while Hunter rested his head on Cam's shoulder, and then Hunter kissed his neck and thought, _Just think. You brought me back from the dead. You know what that means right? _

_What's that?_ Cam sighed happily as he tilted his head against Hunters.

"You," Hunter declared happily, "are stuck with me."

Cam laughed at the pure joy he heard in Hunter's voice, and he turned his head to kiss him. They kissed for several long moments, readjusting themselves until they were comfortable, and finally Cam pulled away to look Hunter directly in the eye.

"Strangely enough," Cam agreed, "I think I can live with that."

* * *

_He knew the dream the instant he was there. It was the same scene as it had been the last hundred times he'd had it. Two little boys in a park, one blonde and the other raven haired. Two mothers, far off in the distance with watchful eyes. He had the dream memorized by now, because when we wasn't dreaming it he was thinking about it. _

_He froze as he felt something graze his hand. He waited as someone intertwined their fingers with his own, and as he turned he knew who it would be. _

_He saw Hunter staring back at him with a small smile, and Cam studied his face. _

"_You're really here, aren't you?" Cam asked him, and his own voice sounded more foreign that Hunter's did in the strange place. _

"_It looks that way." Hunter agreed, and he squeezed Cam's hand. Now, not only were they sharing the same dream, they were actually having it together. Like one person. _

_Cam smiled at him, and he was glad to see Hunter smiling back. The flash of light caught their attention and they turned to watch their mothers come running and pull them apart. _

_Only they didn't. The scene froze as the light engulfed them, and Cam frowned. What was happening? Together, he and Hunter stepped forward to investigate, but they were engulfed in the slow moving light before they really could. _

_What they saw froze them both, and he felt Hunter's hand tighten on his. He couldn't say how many people there were, but he recognized them all. He knew their faces like they were his own, and he found himself knowing their names, understanding their lives, and understanding who they were. _

"_Past lives?" Hunter voiced his wonder, and Cam found himself nodding slowly. _

"_Maybe… more people like us." Cam agreed, and he felt Hunters fascination and amusement in equal amounts. _

"_So it was all true." Hunter spoke quietly, like speaking too loudly might make them disappear. _

"_Now that you are one," the beings spoke in unison, startling Hunter and himself only slightly, "you can begin your journey. Only when two halves become whole can victory be achieved."_

_They watched as the figures clasped hands with their partners and disappeared. It was an eerie feeling, because they were suddenly alone again, watching the scene play out before their eyes. _

_They watched together as Casey Bradley was struck down by a hooded Kiya. They looked as the scarred face of Kiya Watanabe tried to kill Cam and his mother. They watched Cam say goodbye to his dying mother in a hospital bed. They saw themselves fighting Lothor. _

_And this time, there were two figured who appeared in white cloaks from the cave of lost ninjas. Hunters grip on his hand tightened, and Cam swallowed as they removed their hoods. _

_Casey and Miko were each smiling, wearing their necklaces. Cam reached up to hold the gold necklace hanging from his own neck, only to find it replaced with his amulet. _

"_We're always with you." Miko's soft voice told them both. _

"_We have faith in you." Casey agreed. _

_And then, together, "Take care of each other." _

_And they faded away. Cam felt the bottom go from under him and suddenly they were falling again. Hunter grabbed onto him, and they pulled each other close as they continued downward. For the first time, Cam wasn't scared of falling anymore. He looked into Hunter's eyes and he knew, and they both knew. _

_They knew what they had to do. _


	17. The Moon Is Down

_AN: Okay, this is **IMPORTANT**: This story and my story "That Was Then" which chronicles not only Kanoi and Miko's love story but also Kiya/Lothor's rise to power, are directly linked. They both belong in the same twisted AU-verse in my head, and therefore overlap. You could almost consider TWT as a prequel to BWM. Therefore, if some things don't make complete sense by the end of this story, they will be tied up in TWT, or even better tied up when I revamp this whole thing and let out a final draft. All of that will be further explained in my story notes as the end. So basically, what I'm saying is, if there's something you don't understand in this chapter… yeah, it's wholly and completely my fault. Sorry. Also… uh, don't strangle me, mk? Best readings._

"Cam?"

Cam yawned before he opened his eyes, a silly grin on his face that he couldn't suppress. He was waking up in bed with his lover, his boyfriend, and it didn't faze him a bit. The feeling was giddy elation at its best. Looking at Hunter, it struck him that something wasn't quite right. He couldn't put his finger on it for the dazed sleepiness of his brain, and it took him several long seconds before he could comprehend the site in front of him.

Hunter was glowing.

Glowing. There was a hazy outline of whitish light around Hunter's… entire body, actually. The glow floated around him like a gentle cloud, outlining his features and lighting up Hunter's already sparkling eyes. He reached out to touch it, to see if it was real or not, and he grinned like a child.

"Whoa." Cam spoke quietly, reaching out to run his hand against Hunter's bare chest. It was amusing to watch his fingers dissipate the glow and have it come right back into focus a second later. Like running his fingers through water he couldn't feel.

Hunter's involuntary shiver at his touch made Cam withdraw hesitantly, only just remembering the events of the night before. Hunter stopped him, grabbing Cam's hand and placing it firmly back against his chest.

"I'm glowing, aren't I?" Hunter guessed, watching Cam's shy amusement.

Cam just nodded. "This is strange."

"You're glowing too." Hunter told him, reaching out with his own hand to draw a pattern on Cam's shoulder.

"I wonder why…" Cam trailed off as Hunter's warm fingers ran over the back of his cold neck.

Hunter abruptly reached down to free Cam's comforter and bring it up closer around Cam's shoulders, and Cam couldn't help the burst of warmth in his chest that made him smile.

_Better?_ Hunter asked, wrapping his arm protectively around him. Cam nodded.

_Thanks_, he whispered, and Hunter reached over to kiss him quickly. "I wonder why we can't see our own glow."

"The question of why we're glowing is already long gone, of course." Hunter teased, and Cam shrugged.

"I think…" Cam said slowly, as though thinking it over for the first time, "that we are long past the point where things like that will shock me." Cam played with the glow around Hunter's blond hair as he chuckled. "It is strange though. Just like that first day…"

Cam remembered the way Hunter had glowed after they'd created what Hunter was fondly thinking of as 'the orb'. _You glowed then, too. I didn't know what to think about that, and Blake looked at me like I was crazy when I said anything_, Hunter agreed.

Cam wondered absently how long the glowing effect would last, and why the glow had come back now. He heard Hunter snigger across from him, and he quickly and easily pried into Hunter's open mind to see what was so funny.

"Afterglow." Hunter said it just as Cam thought it, and he felt his cheeks go red.

Some of the bonds more literal effects were both humorous and mortifying.

They reached a buzzing ninja ops only a little while later, after a joint shower that took longer than it should have for reasons Cam didn't object to, and an argument about whether breakfast was important on a morning where they were potentially going to defeat Lothor and if so should it be healthy or celebratory?

They were only mildly surprised to find the others waiting for them in Ops. The room fell silent of all conversation the moment they entered, interrupted only a moment later by a snigger from the other Bradley.

"Morning, lovebirds." Blake cooed, effectively breaking the silence. Tori shot him a look that insinuated she might have hit him if he didn't look so pathetic, with bandaged ribs and an injured ankle.

"How're you feeling?" She asked instead, looking between the two of them with equal looks of worry.

"Much better." Hunter answered for the both of them with a smile. "Thanks."

Tori was easily relieved. "Good. I'm glad."

"As are we all." Shane added, in a voice that drew everyone focus immediately. "Now its time to get down to business."

The room grew heavy, and Shane nodded towards the computer. They all surrounded it, and Cam took his place in the chair.

"It won't be long before Lothor decides to strike again, take down the remaining four of us before we can regroup." Shane told them collectively, sounding decidedly more confident than he once had. "We've got to hit him first, and hit him hard. Do we have anything left than can get us to his ship Cam?"

Cam nodded, pulling up the specs for his last unfinished zord. "It can be ready in a few hours, if everyone helps out."

"Whoa, dude," Dustin began skeptically. "You're gonna let us touch your technological stuff?" He sounded incredulous, before shooting uneasy looks at Cam and Hunter. "Are we sure this is Cam?"

"Dustin." Shane's voice was reprimanding, firm, but not in a trivial way. "We don't have time to make mistakes, and we all have to work together if there is any chance of this working. We're a team, and we all need to know that."

This was it, Cam thought. This was Shane stepping up, and finally becoming the leader his father had been grooming him to be. Cam saw it now, in his attitude, his change in stance. Shane must have seen the need for it now, for them to be united, and for the red ranger to finally become who he was always supposed to be.

It made Cam proud in a funny way.

_Would you look at that,_ Hunter mused in his mind. _Red grows up._

Cam just smirked.

"Right dude, of course. I mean, I'm glad to help, ya know?" Dustin answered sheepishly. Shane grinned ruefully and reached out to clasp his shoulder in reassurance.

"It's time, guys. This is it. We've got one last shot. Let's get to work."

* * *

"Cam?" Shane's voice explained the feet by his side, though he couldn't see a face as he was underneath the undercarriage.

"Yeah?" Cam answered, trying not to sound irritated. Having everyone pitch in on finishing the dragon force vehicle would have been a good idea if he hadn't had to be in charge of the whole thing, too. Trying to explain things and tell everyone what to do while he was trying to work on the more complicated parts was grating on his last nerve. His head had begun to throb nearly half an hour ago, and it was only Hunter's gentle soothing in his mind that kept him from reverting to his usual antisocial self.

"I need to know what we're up against, here." Shane's voice continued quietly. "I need to know if there's any hope we're coming back."

Cam slid out from under the Dragon Force's front section to look at Shane critically. "Not if you don't think there is."

Shane grimaced, and rubbed the back of his head. "It's not that I… I just know this is going to be rough… and I can't go into it blind."

"Then don't." Cam snapped without meaning to. He reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose underneath his glasses. "You said you know it's going to be hard. And you're the leader, so everyone will follow whatever example you set, Shane. You were great back in Ops. Keep that up, you'll be fine."

Shane still looked forlorn, but Cam didn't know what else to tell him.

"Look, Shane. I'm not my father. I can't give you any great words of wisdom here." Cam wished for possibly the hundredth time that his father might miraculously show up in the nick of time. "Just do what you do best, and let that be good enough."

Shane nodded, and straightened. "Right. Thanks Cam." And there was the leader again, after the briefest moment of insecurity, ready to soldier on.

Red's were funny that way.

Cam watched him return to what he'd been doing bemusedly. He felt Hunter's presence just before he felt the hand reach down to rub his shoulder. It was comforting, but it did nothing to undo his nerves.

"_What was that about_?" Hunter's voice echoed both out loud and in his mind, and he flinched.

"I have a head ache. Don't do that." Cam pleaded gently.

"I know." Hunter dropped down to the floor beside him, a look of concern on his face. "Here."

He grabbed Cam's face with both hands and tilted their heads together. The kiss wasn't unexpected, but the way the pain in his head faded away instantly was. Hunter pulled away with a smirk, and Cam frowned.

"How did you-" He begun, but Hunter silenced him with another kiss.

"Accept it. Move on." Hunter advised, and Cam sighed, albeit happily. He made a mental note to add that to the list of Strange Things the Bond Lets Them Do. Said list was going to be novel length pretty soon.

"Shane is freaking out." Cam picked up the earlier conversation while scanning the work plans he had laid on the ground next to him.

"So is everyone else." Hunter agreed. "Cept you, of course."

"I'm freaking out." Cam argued instinctively. Hunter rolled his eyes. The action made Cam feel as though he was looking in a mirror.

"My little conformist. No you're not." Hunter stated confidently, resting a hand on Cam's leg and playing with the trim on his training outfit. "You know the same thing I do. Good triumphs over evil every time. And we, you and I, we can't be beat. All that's left is the last two steps of the process; save the students, defeat the bad guy."

Cam starred at Hunter with a raised eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure that if my father were here, he'd have a nice sensei like remark for you about overconfidence."

Hunter smiled ruefully. "Good thing he isn't here, then, huh?"

Hunter stood, and Cam watched him go until he couldn't anymore. Fleetingly, in his head he called, _Love you._

The reply was instantaneous. _Love you more._

* * *

They had a plan. They knew what they were going to do. As Cam glanced over the final diagnostic test of the Dragonforce Vehicle, he let himself breathe. They were ready. He looked up just as Dustin was hanging up his phone. Shane nodded at him.

"That's it then. The last bolt is tightened, and the Dragonforce Vehicle is ready." Cam closed up the plans and the Wind Ninja logo appeared on his computer scene. They all watched it apprehensively for several seconds.

"So… we're going then?" Dustin asked, reaching up to wipe away a grease smudge from his face. He only made the smudge bigger.

Blake was the one who answered. "Definitely."

"Before we do," Cam turned to his computer, relishing the moment he'd get to unveil their last upgrade. "I think I have something else that might help."

He hit a few keys, and the holographic image on the wall disappeared to reveal the glass doors holding his latest project.

"Dude!" Dustin exclaimed automatically.

"New suits!" Tori ran up to the glass as well, and the rest of the rangers followed them.

"I designed them to be more attuned to each of our specific abilities. Our old training gear just isn't going to be enough in a pinch." Cam explained. The rangers admired their new leather outfits happily, and he began explaining their improvements.

The suits were more armored, should they be forced to demorph. The collars were higher, but each of their suits was still trimmed with their individual colors. The sleeves were open and disconnected from the arm bracers, giving them a better agility and wider movement. He had moved the Wind Ninja and Thunder Ninja symbols, respectably, to the middle of the chest, the clasp that held the vest like armor in place. Each of their Ninja element symbols now resided on the right arm, in the way masters wore their elements.

Tori caught it immediately. "Isn't that the way ninja masters wear their elements?"

Cam smirked, not the least bit reproachful. "We've earned it."

_Classy, _Hunter admitted after several moments. _Stylish, too._

_Glad you approve?_ Cam teased. His father would have called it gaudy, unnecessary. But Cam thought they could use every moral boost they could get.

Hunter, of course, was the first to want to try his on. The others agreed instantaneously.

Several moments later, after they'd all changed into the new uniforms and Tori had wiped the smudge off of Dustin's face despite his protests, they all reappeared in the control center together.

"Alright!" Dustin whooped happily, modeling his new earth ninja fashion. "New suits, a sweet new zord, let's do this!"

"Whoa, slow down killer." Tori grabbed Dustin by the trail of leather on the edge of his new uniform as he headed for the stairs.

"Shane?" Cam whispered to the red ranger, who looked perfectly alert. "Now might be a good time for that gung ho spirit stuff. All for one and whatnot."

"And whatnot." Shane agreed, amused. Nevertheless, he turned to the team purposefully.

"Guys." Shane's voice commanded attention from all of them. "We've been through a lot together. All of us." He shot meaningful looks to each one of them, and Cam imagined they all took it a different way. "This could be the last time we fight together as power rangers. I want you all to know that I'm proud to have been with you this long.

"But there are a lot of people up on that ship depending on us. They've waited a long time for us to save them. We owe it to them to come through." Shane took a breath, shakily, but his resolve was strong. "It ends today. One way or another, this is the close. I believe in us, I know we can do this."

He placed his fist out in the middle of their circle. It was ridiculously hokey, and Cam was really resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Tori was always the reliable back up to whoever happened to be feeling leaderly that day, making her more of a consistent presence than any of the rest of them. She reached out and clasped her hand over Shane's with a fierce nod, and the look of determination on her face made him bite back his protests. Dustin was next, the grin on his face replaced by a peaceful smile. Blake followed with a sigh that said he probably thought the same of this little team spirit thing as Cam, but wasn't going to show it. The two probably had more in common than he'd once thought.

Hunter placed his hand on top of his brothers easily, a pricked at Cam in his mind. Cam let himself do it, and placed his hand atop Hunters. All six of them stood there for a moment, and for the first and possibly last time Cam really felt like a part of the team.

Shane's smile was victorious. "Now lets go kick Lothor's evil butt."

* * *

Laying there, parallelized and yet in terrible pain, he tried to replay the events in his mind.

He tried to figure out where they'd gone wrong.

"_I'm going to dock the zord with Lothor's. Get ready to teleport!" His own voice echoed in his head. _

_He'd transported them to different spots on the ship; Dustin to rendezvous with Marah, Shane and Tori to free the Ninja Students, and Blake and Hunter to confront Lothor. _

_**Don't try to be a hero**__, he'd whispered to his love. _

_**Not without you by my side. **_

Cam writhed in a pain he couldn't feel, jerking and twisting as his insides seared.

_Hunter,_ he called. _Don't leave me._

_Always with you,_ Hunter's pained voice replied in his head.

Marah had betrayed them. It was the only conclusion he could come to. She had to have, because Lothor had known. He'd been ready for them, and all the technological upgrades in the world couldn't have saved them.

"_Cam!" Shane's voice came over the wrist communicator he'd made for himself. "We can't morph! Something's wrong!" _

"_That would be the net currently surrounding my ship." Lothor's dark voice had come from the shadows, and Cam rounded on it. "It cost me dearly to buy it off some alien traders, but I think you'll find it most effective against your little powers."_

_Lothor shot out a blast of energy and Cam dodged it narrowly, reaching for the blaster at his side. He brought it up and shot at Lothor, but the beam stopped just before it would have hit him. _

"_I think you'll find Ancient Japanese Protection Charms very effective against anything else you can throw at me as well." He lifted Casey Bradley's silver necklace from around his neck and gave it a little kiss. "Is that all, nephew? This was your brilliant plan?"_

"_It's not over." Cam spat, knowing in his heart that it was. _

"_Pity," Lothor lifted Cam into the air and immobilized him. "I expected more."_

Cam squirmed against his restraints, wishing he knew what had become of the rest of his team. The door to his cell opened, and he looked up.

Lothor stood there, looking particularly gleeful. Behind him, Kapri smirked evilly, and Marah avoided his eyes.

"Well, well, nephew." Lothor stepped toward him, lifting him off the ground without touching him. He waved his other hand behind him, and Marah and Kapri disappeared and closed the door behind them. "At long last, I have you."

"What have you done with the rangers?" Cam growled, wishing he had control of his limbs.

"Oh don't worry. They are happily employed as the new power sources of my ship!" Lothor exclaimed, and Cam felt him invading his mind. Images of Shane, Tori, Dustin and Blake attached to some sort of contraption and unconscious flooded his mind, and he did his best to banish them. "I'm pleased to report they are much more efficient than my previous sources. We're operating at 10 fold!"

"Let them go!" Cam shouted, and Lothor sneered.

"You are hardly in a place to be making demands, Nephew." Lothor pressed him against the wall, and then stalked forward. "I've been trying to get a hold of you for a very long time. Ever since I found out your mother had entrusted you with this." He lifted the silver charm hanging around his neck. "You can imagine how disappointed I was to find out you didn't even know what it was, and had left it in a storage unit all this time. It could have saved me a lot of trouble."

"It isn't yours! Give it back!" Cam reached for it with all his might, but his hand remained pressed against his side. He was weak, and he couldn't fight off Lothor's telekinetic hold.

"But you see it was meant to be! I was disappointed when you thwarted my attempts to steal your mother's amulet that first time." Cam's eyes widened at his words, and Lothor grinned. "Yes, Nephew, I knew it was you. Seeing you there, standing next to my brother and your mother I could see them in you. I realized that day that my only hope was to destroy you before you were born, but alas! Thwarted again. That old man of mine had this little secret weapon stashed away for your mother, knowing I'd come for you." He lifted the golden charm hanging around Cam's neck into the air, where it glinted in the dim light. "You see my father knew me very well. Pity I had to kill him. He knew I'd never let Kanoi rest, and since I couldn't kill Kanoi they did everything they could to protect _you_ from me."

Cam frowned. Why couldn't Lothor kill his father? And why hadn't his father told him any of this?

"He never told you, did he?" Lothor read the expression on his face very clearly. "Never told you about everything he did trying to ensure you'd have a future? Never mentioned the way our conniving parents encased the two of us in a Puro Iunctio they performed on us as infants, to assure we wouldn't be able to beat each other? They matched us in everything; strength, power, even going to far as to link our minds, only to ensure we wouldn't try to destroy each other. Funny how that works out!" Lothor's voice was rising. The anger was showing through on his face. "And he never told you how he could have killed me all those years ago, and left me with this, instead?!"

The mask that usually covered Lothor's face shimmered away, leaving behind what would have been the face of his father, were it not mangled and scarred beyond recognition.

"He made me a monster!" Lothor shouted, and Cam tried not to wince. His ears were burning. "And your foolish mother thought she could keep me from you, by binding your ninja powers inside you as a child. Fools!"

"Don't talk about my mother." Cam whispered, his blood boiling.

"Don't you see, Cameron? Isn't it making sense to you yet?" Lothor reached out to take the necklace floating around his neck in his hands. "When you went back to the past to steal your mother's amulet, you set into motion the entire chain of events that has led you here. For 24 year-" Lothor choked on the words, his veins pulsing in his forehead. He calmed himself with a malicious grin. "For 24 years, my only goal was to stop you from going back in time. I haunted your mother and father's every step, and I nearly got to you once, had it not been for this damned trinket!"

"Time travel is final. You could never stop it from happening." Cam told him, a pleased smirk on his own face. "You wasted your time."

Lothors hand clenched at his side. "Yes, so it would seem. But how does it feel, nephew, to know you caused it all? Your mother's death, the murder of your lover's parents."

"Stop it." Cam told him, and regretted it immediately.

"Everything that has happened was set into motion _that_ _day_ you banished me. For 24 years I fought for my revenge. And then fate handed me a new gem." He reached out and yanked the necklace off Cam's neck, and Cam let out a strangled cry. "Who would have thought that you'd be one of the chosen ones? All that time trying to destroy you, when I should have been trying to turn you to my side." He took the silver chain hanging around his own neck and held them together.

"I'd never join you. You said it yourself, you're a monster!" Cam struggled, forcing his muscled to cooperate. He lifted his hand toward the chains, reaching with all his might.

"I don't want you to join me _now_!" Lothor laughed, pushing Cam's hand away with his mind and holding the necklaces up. "Now I have everything I need. All I've got to do is keep you and that Bradley separated, but of course not too far as I wouldn't want you dying on me. With the two of you in my power and both of these charms in my possession, all of your powers will flow through me, and I will be unstoppable!"

Lothor laughed the crazy laugh of a madman, holding the gold and silver necklaces with a glint in his eye.

"This is my destiny, at long last!"

"You won't win, Lothor. There will always be people there to stop you." Cam glared at Lothor, whose twisted face simply transformed into a smile.

He lifted his hand once more and Cam screamed, struck by such a powerful pain he couldn't contain it. Every inch of his body burned. He felt old wounds reopening; blood seeped from his arm, his hand, his leg… and every one of his bonding scars was glowing bright red.

Lothors sneer was close in the darkness that threatened to take him over.

"And you're no longer one of them."


	18. A Song for Our Mothers

_AN: It seems fitting that after the semester from hell, I will finally end your with the final chapter of BWM. There is, however, an epilogue coming very shortly after this. Forgive me, or yell at me, but at least review after all this time to let me know you haen't died!_

**A Song For Our Mothers**

Cam cried out in his mind, calling for Hunter frantically. He remembered this scene: himself writhing on the ground as his scars burned, a dark voice in the background. His mother had shown it to him in his dreams. He had let it happen, had _made_ it happen.

He couldn't see any way out.

The pain stopped, but every muscle in his body continued to burn with dark power as Lothor leaned down over him. "Had enough, nephew?"

Cam couldn't answer. He stared up at Lothor's evil grin, praying for a miracle. Then there was a gust of air from somewhere behind him, and Lothor looked up at the same moment Cam did.

"Step away from my son."

Kanoi Watanabe stood behind Cameron, in human form. With a flick of his hand, Lothor was sent flying, smacking up against the wall and crying out in agony.

"Dad?" Cam was surprised when the word came out sounding whole and less panicked than he felt. His father picked him up and held him there, making Cam look him in the face.

"Everything will soon be explained, Cameron. Right now you must free the rangers and the students. I will hold off Lothor." Kanoi raised his hand and the two necklaces Lothor had been holding flew into his hand. He pressed them into Cams. "Only together can the 6 of you defeat him! Do you understand? Find the others, and do not separate from each other!"

With that Cam felt himself being pushed out the door of the cell, and his legs moved down the hall of their own accord. He heard Lothor's voice as he walked away.

"So, brother… come to finish what we started all those years ago?" Lothor wheezed, and something exploded. Cam paused, and looked back over his shoulder.

_Do not turn back Cameron. Go!_ Cam flinched at the sternness of the voice that had invaded his head, an ability he'd never known his father had. He continued down the hallway, this time at a sprint. Only then did it occur to him he had no idea where he was going.

_Hunter, where are you?_ He called. It took a moment for Hunter to respond.

_It's dark, hard to tell… I'm not sure. What's happening, are you okay?_ Hunter's voice seemed pained.

_My dad is here. He'd fighting Lothor. We have to find the others and help him._ Cam stopped and caught his breath, looking around him for anything that might give him a hint where Lothor had stashed Hunter.

_Your dad?_ Hunter asked, shock evident in his voice.

_Think, Hunter. Is there anything you can see that could tell me where you are?_ Cam thought back, feeling lost.

_Cam, focus. I'm already telling you where I am. Just listen. _Hunter sounded calmer, but his response confused Cam.

_What? _

_Listen._ Hunter instructed again, and this time Cam did. He closed his eyes and tried to feel whatever Hunter thought he was sending him. Sure enough, he felt a magic string tugging his chest forward. He opened his eyes and let the sensation lead him straight to Hunter.

He tried to pay attention to the halls he was walking down so he'd know how to get back, but his mind was fogged with pain and worry and hast, and he began sprinting as the call to get to Hunter got stronger.

"Hunter!" Cam called as he reached the door that he knew Hunter had to be on the other side of.

"I'm here." Hunter answered, and Cam looked for any sign of a way to open the door.

There was no switch, or handle, or even doorknob. It looked for all the world as just another part of the ship. Cam cursed. He didn't have the strength to blast it open, he knew.

"It's a cloak." A voice startled him, which it shouldn't have, and Cam jumped to see Marah standing next to him. She jumped when he did. Cam assumed a fighting pose. "Please, cousin, I want to help!"

Cam scoffed. "A lot of help you've been. You led us into this trap!"

Marah shook her head furtively. "No, I didn't, I swear! I honestly thought it was safe! But as I got off the phone with Dustin, Lothor appeared from behind a pillar. It wasn't my fault, really!"

Cam just glared at her.

"Please, let me prove it to you." Marah reached towards the wall and her hand went right through it. Something happened, and then the cloak vanished and was replaced by a door that Marah pulled open with a smile. "See? I'm really not that evil, I promise! The yellow ranger's had a really good influence on me!"

Hunter was on the floor against the wall, and he struggled to stand as he saw the door open. Cam was about to step through when he thought better of it.

"You first." He told Marah, and she gladly stepped into the cell. Cam followed her.

His reunion with Hunter was bittersweet. Hunter grabbed him the second he was within reach, and Cam helped him to stand. They exchanged one long, hurried, rough kiss before Cam had to pull away. He took the silver necklace from his hand and placed it around Hunter's neck. He kept the gold one for himself, replacing its weight firmly on his chest.

"We need to go." He told Hunter. Hunter took a breath and nodded.

"Any open wounds?" His voice sounded amused, but Cam simply held up his bloodied hand.

Hunter pressed his arm into it, the same way they had first discovered the bond, and they were overcome with sensation. The area around him went white, and he held onto Hunter for dear life. In that short but drawn out moment Cam felt as though he could see it all clearly. He felt the pieces of his fragmented past falling into place, and realized that he and Hunter's fates had always been intertwined, and he'd done that, too. Maybe everything he'd caused hadn't all been bad.

The white dimmed, and they were standing in the cell again, breathing heavily.

"Wow, cousin." Marah giggled. "That was impressive."

Hunter glanced at Marah for the first time. "Where are the others?"

Marah chewed her lip, and looked between them as though they might hurt her. "I begged him not to hurt them."

Hunter growled. "Where?!"

* * *

Marah used her dark teleportation to take them directly to the room the others were being kept in.

"What did he do to them?" Hunter asked, as stunned by the scene as Cam was disgusted.

"He's using them to power the ship. Ranger power is a lot stronger than any other kind you can find in the known universe. Right now, we're indestructible." Marah answered. She reached out to touch Dustin's hand softly.

The four remaining rangers were strapped to the wall. They appeared to be unconscious, and something disgustingly vine like had grown around them to hold them in place. Plastic tubes were in their hands and feet, and a collar was secured around each of their necks. The energy flowing from them matched their ranger colors. It was all going into one large orb in the center.

"And the students?" Hunter turned back to Marah. She looked confused for a moment and then bit her lip nervously again.

Finally, she pointed up.

They looked up to see hundreds of the orbs Lothor had encased his victims in, all floating at the top like helium balloons.

"Marah, what was the old power source of Lothors ship?" Cam asked, trying to reason a way to get the rangers out safely.

"He had this great big crystal thing before." Marah said, shrugging.

Cam and Hunter exchanged looks.

_Can you get them out?_ Hunter wanted to know.

Cam frowned. _I'm not entirely sure. I think the collars are the main source._

He went to examine Blake's. It was like two plates of metal, with a small circle in the front of the neck. Surely there had to be a way to get them off?

"Where's that crystal?" Cam asked suddenly, glancing at the orb the rangers were connected to.

Marah was tugging on one of her wings nervously. "Oh, Lothor took it. I think he has it in his throne room."

"Go and get it." Hunter ordered, staring Marah down.

Marah disappeared without a word.

"He has a thrown room?" Hunter asked immediately, and then followed with, "Do you trust her?"

"What other choice do we have?" Cam agreed with him, but Marah was their only connection on this ship.

"What do you want the crystal for?" Hunter asked after another moment. He was staring hard at the rangers, trapped with their energy fading away.

"I want to overload the ships power system." Cam told him, studying the orb the rangers were connected to.

"That could kill them." Hunter spoke evenly, having already looked into Cam's buzzing thoughts and knowing exactly what Cam knew.

It could. But they were all going to be dead if they didn't do something quick, and it had as much of a chance as working as it did not working, and for once Cam was willing to do things Hunters way; he was going to dive in head first and pray the water was deep enough. "We have to try."

Marah reappeared, large crystal in hand. She brought it to Cam with a smile. "See? I can do all this good stuff, really I can!"

"We can discuss the terms of your probation later." Cam agreed, taking the crystal from her. Marah clapped happily.

"I told Kapri you were nicer than Uncle!" Marah exclaimed happily, and both Cam and Hunter froze.

"Marah, where is Kapri?" Hunter asked his jubilant cousin.

"Oh!" Marah seemed to have just remembered this as well. "She didn't want to come help cousin Cam, but I did. We were fighting it out on the command deck, and she wouldn't give in. So I hit her over the head with a scroll."

Cam paused to give her what he imagined was an identical look of Hunter's scandalized expression.

"What?" Marah squirmed. "She'll be alright! I didn't hit her _that _hard!"

Cam shook his head and let it go, concerned with things slightly more important than the fact that his homicidal cousin might be bleeding into her brain on another part of the ship. He set the crystal back in its place at the center of the room. He gripped his mother's necklace for a moment as he debated, but it was Hunter who was pulling out a pocket knife and slicing open his palms. He passed it to Cam. He wiped it off on his uniform first before taking it to his own palm.

Cam hissed as the sharp metal pierced his skin, watching the red blood come trickling out of the cut. After he'd done both hands he slipped the knife into his own pocket, and met Hunter's eyes.

_Scared?_ Hunter wondered with a tilt of his head.

_Terrified._ Cam gave him the best half smile he could, and then he placed one of his hands on the crystal in front of them. Hunter followed suit, and with a deep bracing breathe he reached out for Hunters hand.

They met, and the world exploded with color.

Light erupted from their joined hands, Cam's skin burned, he froze and he yelled but he felt the energy surging through him into the ship, running through the crystal and into the rangers. Lights began to flicker and spark, panels flew off the walls, it was complete and utter chaos.

Cam held onto Hunter's hand with all his might, and opened his eyes to meet Hunters. He couldn't see anything really, but he knew those eyes. He'd been starring at them like this since the day they'd rebounded. Hunter's eyes, wide and in pain, but peaceful. In front of him they merged with his own and he could see them both, could see everything as though he was looking down upon them.

And then nothing.

He felt the floor beneath him before he realized he'd fallen, but he was still holding Hunter's hand and as he opened his eyes Hunter squeeze his hand.

Cam opened his eyes to find Hunter looking back at him lazily. "I know what it means."

Hunter nodded. "I know."

Gasps from the walls around them drew their attention, and they helped each other up in the darkness to find the rangers breaking free of the vines and shedding the collars.

"What happened?" Blake was asking, stumbling out of his alcove on the wall and towards them.

"I feel so weak." Tori admitted, latching onto Blake as she stepped down next to him. Between the two of them they were able to hold each other up.

Marah had offered Dustin a hand and he was leaning heavily on her.

"I'm so glad you're okay!" She jumped, latching protectively onto his side. "I told you I was learning all this good stuff, didn't I?"

Cam ignored her. "Lothor's been using you to power his ship. He's drained a lot of your energy. I don't know how much power any of you have left."

"Well our morphers weren't working anyway," Shane was the only one who seemed to have retained his strength. "I suppose we're on our own."

Cam nodded, and they all jumped as sparks flew from a console above them where the ninja students… weren't. Cam looked up and around and couldn't believe his eyes.

"What happened to the ninja students?" He asked, facing Marah who was the only one who might know.

She blinked and then smiled. "While you were doing whatever you were doing with that crystal, they all floated away, back to earth."

"What?!" Hunter rounded, shocked.

Marah nodded. "I thought you knew you were doing that?"

Cam and Hunter exchanged a look, but Hunter shrugged. "If it's in our favor, I'm really in the mood to not question it."

"The ninja students are free?" Tori smiled happily, looking around at all of them. "You realize that means we actually did it? We freed the students!"

"What's this 'we' I'm hearing about?" Hunter wanted to know, and Cam elbowed him.

"This isn't over, not yet. We need to find Lothor and finish him." Shane said, and Cam's eyes widened.

"My father's been fighting him." He told them, his heart sinking down to his stomach.

"Where?" Tori's voice was urgent now to, and the energy in the room picked up noticeably. Cam looked to Marah.

"3rd level, section d." She told them, but the information was meaningless to them.

"Can you take us there?" Hunter asked. Marah nodded.

"Okay," Shane began, seeming to have come up with a plan out of nowhere. "Tori, Dustin and I will go with Marah to help Sensei-"

"No!" Cam interrupted, remembering his father's words. "We can only beat him together. It has to be all of us, head on, _together_."

Shane looked grim, but he nodded. "Okay, teleport us to Lothor." Marah nodded and cleared her throat.

"Everyone gather round!" She made sure they were all touching, and then she took Dustin's hand. "Hold on," she advised.

The world disappeared and reappeared, and there was a blast that just missed them. Cam couldn't tell whether it had been Lothors or his fathers.

Marah squeaked, let go of Dustins hand and disappeared again.

Cam tried to take in what was around him. The lights were flickering, and Lothor and his dad were currently locked in miraculously fast hand to hand combat. Shane rushed in, sending a flying kick towards Lothors side.

Tori and Dustin were right behind him, and Cam rushed forward to relieve his tired father. Lothor caught Shane's kick and flipped him backwards, his target now changed.

Cam helped his father a few paces away, and the old sensei leaned against a wall for support.

"What kept you?" He tried to make his voice seem light, but was unsuccessful. "Cameron, listen to me." He grabbed Cam's shoulder tightly, and Cam nodded. "You must destroy him. The 6 of you are the only ones who can. It is preordained-" he began coughing roughly.

"What do you mean, preordained?" Cam asked, searching his fathers face.

His father caught his breath. "The scroll of destiny. You are the only ones who can-" He choked again, but swallowed hard. "You must promise me that no matter what happens you will _destroy_ Lothor."

And suddenly Cam understood. Just like that, he realized what that meant.

"You must, Cameron." Sensei shook him, but Cam shook his head.

"If we destroy him, you'll die too!" Cam glanced over his fathers shoulder at the battle taking place. He watched the five ninjas rush Lothor only to be pushed away, and knew he had to get in there to help. "There must be another way!"

An energy blast headed towards them, and Cam rolled with his father to the ground.

"I hate to break up this family reunion," Lothor stated in a voice that clearly implied he did not. "I'm just dying to know how you think this will end, Kanoi."

Kanoi stood, and the rest of the rangers regrouped behind him.

"All of your little rangers are powerless. Sure, they may have desolated my ship and freed your students, but the 7 of you are stuck with me. Let me go, and I'll come back stronger and better than ever before." Lothors re-masked face twisted into an evil grin. "And you know as well as I that if _I_ go, _you_ go."

Shane looked between the two older men, astonished. "Sensei?"

"Yes, Shane. It is true." Sensei spoke gravely, but he never broke Lothors gaze. "He and I are linked through a Puro Iunctio. Our parents thought it was the only way to keep us from destroying one another."

"Funny how that worked out." Lothor replied. He summoned an orb of energy in his hand and sent it flying towards the lot of them.

Cam and Hunter joined hands and stepped forward, deflecting the energy beam easily.

"Interesting, too, that it would be your offspring who'd end up with the power to kill me." Lothor seemed genuinely amused, and he shot another beam of energy at them for good measure. "So, this is it. You have a choice to make, Rangers.

"You can destroy me right here, but do it, and it means also loosing your precious Sensei Master. Don't do it, and I will never stop hunting you. Or we can stay here, the whole jolly lot of us, locked in epic battle for a lifetime!" Lothor shot three more blasts of energy off around him, they dented the walls, but Cam and Hunter protected the group from anything he could send at them.

"You underestimate them, Kiya." Kanoi Watanabe sounded so very different than his raging twin, standing in the middle of them. "As I did. This has always been your destiny, rangers."

"No, Sensei!" Tori grabbed onto his arm.

"We can't destroy you." Shane objected as well.

"Make your choice!" Lothor shouted at them, sending an energy blast with each word.

Cam knew, just as they all did, that they could not let Lothor escape. Not if they wanted any peace in their lives. He understood the grave consequences of whatever they decided. Suddenly, something occurred to Cam. _The future is what you make of it,_ Miko had told him. The words echoes in his mind now, and Cam knew. He'd known all along.

Cam dropped Hunter's hand, and called to him all the energy he could.

"Power of the Samurai!" Green light shot from his fingers towards Lothor, who let out a maniacal laugh and fought back with his own yellow beam.

"Cam, what are you doing?" Dustin yanked at Cam's shoulder.

Cam was holding Lothor's beam at bay, but it was gaining on him. "We can defeat him without killing him."

"What do you mean?" Tori asked, starring at the light coming from his fingers.

"I can't explain it. But I know this is right! Trust me!" Cam told them. They exchanged looks between themselves, and Cam rolled his eyes. "I can't do this forever!"

Hunter understood, just as Cam knew he would. "Power of Thunder!" Crimson light shot from his hand, and he stood back to back with Cam as the two of them battled Lothor.

"But we don't have any power left!" Blake said from beside Hunter.

"Where do you think mine's coming from?" Cam asked them incredulously. His ranger power had been destroyed long ago.

"We've always had the power." Shane told the others. "It's been inside us all along. And I trust it."

He took his place next to Cam and Hunter, and called out "Power of Wind!" His red energy joined their own.

The others were quick to follow suit.

"Power of Water!" Tori exclaimed, and blue energy shot out of her fingers towards Lothor.

"Power of Earth!" Dustin's yellow energy swirled into focus beside them.

"Power of Thunder!" Blake took his place next to his brother, and the six of their energies intertwined and overlapped, forcing Lothors pulse back.

Later, they would tell stories how Lothor's maniacal laughter continued all the way until the beam reached him. It engulfed his hand, and then spread like wildfire, covering his entire body in a rainbow of light.

"This is not the end!" Lothor laughed, even as he began to rise into the air and glow brightly before them. "I'll never let you go! Never!"

Their energies swirled around him, and then abruptly stopped flowing. The orb he was encased in shimmered brightly, and then exploded, knocking them all backwards.

The last thing Cam saw was his mother, smiling at him.


	19. Epilogue: The Long Spring Ahead

In the aftermath of the great explosion, Marah had returned. She woke them, alerting them that she had put the ship in self destruct mode.

Upon awakening, Cam's first thought was for his father. He rushed to his side, turning over what he hoped was not the deceased body of his father. To his and the rangers great relief, Sensei Kanoi Watanabe opened his eyes, and smiled.

"But I don't understand. What happened to Lothor?" Tori asked as they helped him up. They glanced around the room.

It was empty, except for them.

Cam stepped forward, surveying the room more closely. He had no words for what had just occurred, but if his father was still alive-

He spotted something glowing on the ground. He went to retrieve it, followed closely by the rest of the rangers.

"I… think I found him." He lifted the orb to take a closer look. None of them could see what was inside, but it swirled with their combined powers, just as the bigger version containing Lothor had done.

"A most fitting end, it would seem." His father reached out to hold the orb, and Cam handed it over easily.

"I hate to break up the party here, but did I mention the part where the ship is about to blow up?" Marah asked urgently. It was, possibly, the first time she'd been serious about anything. Ever.

They gathered around her, and she teleported them back down to earth, where thousands of ninja students were waiting for them.

* * *

It would take them 4 months, 6 days, and 13 hours before they could officially announce the reopening of the Wind Academy. There was much to do, but they finally had enough bodies to get it done. The returning students had been briefed on what had happened, and many a party had been held for their victory.

Upon the return of the Ninjetti Council, they'd all been asked to undergo formal questioning about the events leading up to that final battle, and that had been a hassle but one that proved only to get them more honors than was necessary. The council thought it best to award the rangers not only with their Wind Academy diplomas, but they conferred on each of them with the rank of Ninja Master.

Sensei Watanabe had never been prouder.

At their graduation party, Shane had insisted to know what had happened to Sensei.

"Yeah, and dude, how did you get turned back into a human?" Dustin asked, poking Sensei for good measure.

Cam, lying in Hunter's lap at the moment while Tori used his leg for a backrest, had been reasonably intrigued.

"I knew when Cam and Hunter began showing signs of their Myou Saiken that I could not guide them in my guinea pig form." Sensei began, and then frowned. "I was also upset when they refused to confide in me, and I knew that I had to let them figure out some things on their own. I realized I was endangering all of your lives by leaving, but I simply could not stay."

The rangers were silent.

"And," he added, a twinkle in his eye, "I had faith that I had trained you well enough to soldier on, as they say."

"Wait," Hunter's fingers stilled in Cam's hair. "Myou Saiken?"

Sensei nodded. "It means Life Bond."

"And you got turned into a human, how?" Dustin pressed.

"There is a way of reversing such dark magic in bonded twins, as Kiya and I were. He must have known when turning me into a guinea pig that I could reverse it. My only problem was that it was a quest I had to go on alone, which meant leaving all of you. It was a hard decision, but I knew it must be done." Sensei continued on, and Cam wondered once more about Lothors words to him on the ship. Just how much had his father been through because of him? "You see, the type of magic our parents performed on us as children was to ensure that we could not kill or harm one another. They feared we would grow to hate one another, and tried to prevent it. The irony was that the bind was what caused our animosity. In order to reverse Kiya's curse upon me, all I had to do was return to the place of our birth, the place where the Puro Iunctio was performed. In that place, all that we could do to each other would fade away. That is precisely what my non human form did when I entered it."

"You're kidding." Shane sounded unconvinced. Cam couldn't believe it either.

"I am not." Sensei stated firmly.

"So… what happened to Lothor?" Blake asked, taking a sip of his drink.

Sensei chuckled. "The council wanted to take him into custody, but I assured them he would be quite safe with me." From underneath his robe Sensei Watanabe pulled out the glowing orb, encased in a metal cage-like thing and attached to a chain. "After all, these things are best left to family."

There was, what appeared to be, an angry glow emitted from the orb at that moment, and Kanoi happily flicked it and stuffed it back inside his shirt.

"I've been waiting 30 years to do that," he confided in them, and they all laughed.

"I still don't get it." Tori was shaking her head, a lazy smile on her face. "You said our destiny was to destroy Lothor. How come we captured him instead?"

"That is a question I may never be able to answer." He admitted, but he stood and went to a shelf in the back of ops. He pulled out a torn scroll. "When I said it was your destiny, I was not saying that lightly. There is, in fact, a Scroll of Destiny, the better part of which has been lost for several centuries. There is however a part you may find of interest."

He unfurled the scroll, and held it out to Shane, whose eyes widened. "That's us!"

He held it up for the rest of them to see, and sure enough; six figures in fighting stances lined the bottom of the page.

"Whoa, dude!" Dustin exclaimed happily, and he and Hunter high-fived.

"So you see, you were always meant to be rangers." Sensei told them with a smile.

"Why didn't you show us this before?" Blake wanted to know.

"I had always assumed it was your destiny to destroy Lothor, something of which I had never been capable of." He sighed with a frown, but his expression brightened a moment later. "Funny thing about scrolls, though. Only the journey is written. The outcome is, how do you say, open to interpretation."

Cam caught his father's eye, and Kanoi Watanabe's aged face looked young to him with the smile upon his face. Cam grinned back.

"I had always known you would have to face Lothor, but I wanted to protect you." His father told them, though his eyes lingered on Cam. "I cared too much about you."

"Something tells me," Hunter said with a smirk, "everything worked out just how it was supposed to."

* * *

Cam found his way to his father's new office easily, taking his time. There was no reason to be in a hurry. Classes wouldn't start until the next day, and he'd been waiting to have this conversation for a long time.

He knocked on the door gently, and it opened without a word. He stepped inside to see his father staring out the window wistfully. Sensei Watanabe did not look up or acknowledge him in any way, so Cam joined him at the windowsill.

"The council called." Cam said at last. "They wanted to know when you were going to accept their offer as a member."

His father smiled. "I had always dreamed of becoming a member of the Ninjetti Council, even since I was a boy." He turned to look at Cam. "Isn't it strange how our dreams and lives can change so quickly?"

Cam smiled with him, and returned his gaze to the window. It was a perfect view of the newly constructed grounds.

"My place is, and always has been, here; with my students." He decided firmly. "It always will be."

Cam nodded, amused. "You do intend to retire some day, don't you?"

Kanoi laughed. "So ready to become headmaster of the academy, are you?"

"Of course not." Cam guffawed, appalled at the idea. "I hate politics."

His father smiled mischievously. "When I do retire, it will be because I am confident those who will take my place are ready." His gaze returned to the window.

They could see the former rangers sitting in the sunlight. Marah was with them. Hunter, too, though he knew exactly where Cam was and even went so far as to wave in their direction. Cam smirked. Shane and Tori were sparring with each other good-naturedly, performing for their friends.

"They will make fine Co-Headmasters one day." Kanoi mused, watching them. Cam raised an eyebrow, to which Kanoi replied, "Of course, Headmistress in Tori's case."

"What, all of them?" Cam asked, eyeing the group.

"I had originally intended Shane to take my place when he was ready." His father mused, "But something has changed in him since the incident with Skyla, and I am no longer certain he could do it alone. He and Tori will balance each other well in my position, I think."

Cam watched the group of new teachers, wondering if any of them had any idea what was in store.

"It is quite a pity that the ranger powers were destroyed in the battle." Sensei continued, and he turned to pull the old engraved box from his desk. "All except for Hunter's, of course."

"We may yet find a way to restore them. It's just a matter of finding a new way to tap the power grid." Cam explained.

His father nodded. "Let us pray the day we need them again may never come."

"What about Kapri? She could still be out there somewhere, and unlike Marah she was as evil as they come." Cam folded his arms, glancing at his cousin out the window.

"Marah assures me that Kapri escaped the ship before it's destruction and is in fact 'out there somewhere'." His father replaced the box, and looked up at Cam with a smirk. "We may one day see her again, but her future and our part in it is still unclear.

"But that is not why you are here." Sensei drew his attention back to the present, and Cam blushed slightly.

"I wanted to ask you…" He paused, unsure, but could only blunder on. "Did you know?"

Kanoi seemed to consider this a moment. "Did I know that you and Hunter were a Myou Saiken pair? Did I know about that day in the park? Or did I know that you, when tested, would not let me down? To which event do you refer?"

Cam sighed. "Why do you always answer questions with another question?"

"Why do you complain about a trait which you have so clearly inherited?" Sensei asked him, and Cam turned to look at him accusingly.

Their neutral expressions turning into identical grins at precisely the same moment, and Sensei chuckled.

"So much like your mother." He mused, regarding the picture of Miko on his desk. "She told me of that day in the park, you know. I was certain she was mistaken, but as the years passed and Lothor's many assassination attempts of you failed one after the other, I began to wonder myself.

"It did not occur to me when we first encountered Hunter Bradley that he might be the one to whom you were bonded, for had it I might have told you about it sooner."

"Why didn't you?" Cam followed him, glancing at his mother's photo. He felt like he knew that face so much better now. "Tell us about it, I mean."

"By the time I realized what was going on between you, I realized I could not interfere. Bonds are tricky things, that way." Kanoi glanced at the necklace Cam wore.

"Why did it choose us?" Cam wanted to know. He reached up to hold the gold charm around his neck.

"No one can say. The writings will tell you it is because you were meant to save the world together." Kanoi sounded unimpressed, and Cam frowned.

"But we didn't." Cam said, and his father raised his eyebrows at him.

"You didn't?"

"Well, not just us. The rest of the rangers did too." He felt silly saying it, trying to deny his part in it. It felt undeserved.

"But you did, in fact, save the world from evil. Yes, others were involved, but can you deny that your and Hunter's bond did not play a crucial role in Lothors defeat?" His father asked him neutrally.

Cam shrugged, for lack of an answer.

"I thought not." He replied confidently, sweeping around to sit at his desk. "The prophecy was correct then, albeit ignoring some of the smaller details."

"Funny, that." Cam agreed, staring at his father. "I'm sorry we didn't tell you. I was… ashamed."

"Our relationship has suffered much over the years, Cameron." Kanoi pursed his lips, as though unsure how to go about saying this. "When your mother died, you and I were never quite father and son again. This has always saddened me, as I know it would your mother. It was my hope that we might one day become friends, at the least."

Cam smiled. "I think we could do that."

His father, and his friend, nodded. "And I hope you know, my son, that I have always loved you. Everything I did, everything I've ever done, has been for you."

Cam did know. He didn't know the details, but he knew his father had suffered, and it was all Cam could do to reach out and take his fathers hand. "I love you too, dad."

They shared a tender moment, and then Sensei patted his hand and Cam let go.

"Don't worry, Cameron." Sensei grinned again, that mischievous twinkle coming back into his previously teary eyes. "When you have children, you will understand."

Cam froze, unsure how to respond. Finally he went for to object, but before he could get the words out his father had continued.

"I do believe Hunter owes some return karma where adoption is concerned." He was staring wistfully out the window again, and Cam just gaped at him.

He finally managed to swallow, and with a small but growing grin answered, "We'll see."

"Yes, I imagine we will." His father grinned back. "Now go. Your friends are missing you."

Cam nodded and turned as though to exit the office. When he reached the door he stopped, and looked over his shoulder. "Dad?"

"Yes Cameron?" His father had returned to his work, but looked up at Cam's question.

Cam took a breath. "Thank you. For everything." He turned swiftly and left the office, closing the door behind him.

What he did not hear was an old, teary eyed Kanoi Watanabe reply in a near whisper, in the proudest voice he could, "You are _most_ welcome."

* * *

It was a gorgeous sunset that night on the Wind Academy grounds. Cam sat, or rather laid, watching it lazily from the hammock Hunter had put up outside their joint apartment.

Hunter was teaching at the Thunder Academy, but Cam had nearly perfected his teleportation method, so the distance factor wouldn't be a problem for much longer. In the meantime, Hunter was a Ninja Master, so he didn't need anyones permission to streak between work and their on campus apartment.

Cam waited for him to return as he watched the sun go down, not a care in the world on his mind. Lothor was gone, the world was safe, and the rangers, while forever bound together by the power and their friendship, had disbanded.

Most of them had stayed on at the Academies, save for Blake, who had decided to pursue his motocross career instead. Hunter had been approached as well, but he knew he could never go very far away from Cam, and had refused, taking Sensei Omina's offer of Head teacher at the Thunder Academy instead. Cam couldn't help but wonder if he'd held Hunter back from what he'd really wanted, but Hunter had assured him that what he really wanted was Cam, and nothing else.

He could feel Hunter's presence in close proximity now, and he knew Hunter would find him at any moment. He waited patiently, his thoughts drifting to other things.

"My, aren't we content tonight?" Hunter's voice said from behind him, and Cam grinned.

"Not quite yet." He held out his hand, and Hunter took it. Cam glanced up at his blond haired mate, and Hunter bent down to kiss him.

Cam scooted over for Hunter to join him in the hammock, and they spent a few moments readjusting. They finally settled, and Cam nuzzled his face into Hunter's neck happily. Hunter wrapped his arms tightly around Cam and planted a kiss on the top of his head.

Cam sighed happily.

_What were you thinking about?_ Hunter wondered idly.

_You. Us. Everyone, actually._ Cam admitted, reaching up to stroke Hunter's face gently. "You need to shave."

Hunter smirked. _That's a lot to think about._ He ignored Cam's comment about the shaving.

_It's been an interesting few months,_ Cam admonished, and Hunter chuckled.

"I never thought I'd see the day," Hunter mused, "when we could say we have the rest of our lives ahead of us."

Cam raised an eyebrow, knowing exactly what Hunter meant yet amused by it too. "You didn't?"

Hunter shot him a look, and poked him in the stomach. Cam smiled and let it go.

They were quiet, letting each others energy recharge them from the long day. Cam wondered absently if this feeling of contentment he felt would ever fade.

"It'd better not." Hunter teased, and Cam blushed. He still wasn't very good at shutting Hunter out of his mind completely, but he didn't always need to be.

Hunter reached over and lifted his chin, and Cam met his lips in a sweet, gentle kiss. It lasted for several minutes, the two of them working at the mechanics of a well practiced skill. When Hunter pulled away, Cam laid his head back down and looked at the sunset once more.

"If someone where to have asked me where I thought I'd be right now a year ago, I couldn't have been more wrong." Cam told him. Hunter didn't answer, so Cam continued. "Are you happy?"

"Bizarrely." Hunter replied, grinning. "You don't need to ask me to know that."

"Suppose we weren't bonded." Cam proposed, pulling back to look Hunter square in the eye. "I mean, as it is we have no choice but to love each other. If it weren't for the bond, we might never have met, let alone fallen in love."

Hunter's expression was calculating. "Arguable."

"I'm just saying… we don't get to decide who we love. We were never un-bonded, not really. For all we really know, everything we feel about each other is just the bond." The thought scared him slightly, but he said it anyway.

Hunter frowned. "I don't think so." He said quietly. "I think I'd have loved you anyway."

Cam swallowed. "You do?"

"Yeah. I do." He sounded more confident now, and he rocked the hammock a little as he picked his head up to look down over Cam.

"You can't know that." Cam argued for the sake of the blush rising in his cheeks.

"I think I've always loved you, even when I didn't know it." Hunter kissed his forehead, and then both of his cheeks, gently, soothingly, lovingly.

Cam grinned up at him. "I like the sound of that."

"You were always my destiny, Cam, but…" Hunter trailed off, searching Cam's face for something.

"But?" Cam asked, reaching up to move some of Hunter's blond hair away from his face.

Hunter bent down to kiss him, and Cam took the kiss completely. It was quite the change from a few months ago, to say the least. The bond had changed everything, but Cam was thankful for all of it. And as Hunter kissed him, Cam knew too that there was nowhere else in the world he would rather be. This was always where he was supposed to end up, he could feel it. And he thought he would have loved Hunter anyway.

Hunter pulled away from him, and took Cam's hand in his own. Their scars matched up and sent sensations down their arms, and Hunter looked Cam in the eye once more.

"I love you." He said, and Cam felt the burst of warmth in his chest explode.

"I love you, too."

Hunter smiled, and Cam smiled, and finally Hunter told him what they both knew had always been true.

"We were meant to be. We've loved each other since _before we met_."

**~Fin~**

_**Notes, Thanks, and The Future**_

I'd planned the last words of this story from the moment I began it, and never in my life have I experienced such joy as getting to write them down. This has been a project that has taken about 5 years of my life, and finally, the first draft is finished. I owe a couple of people some thank you's:

To Amanda, who never stopped believing I could do it. She is my angel, and my best friend, and she was there the whole time I struggled with this. She never let me give up on myself, and so this whole story really belongs to her.

To Eric, for re-inspiring me in my darkest hours to believe that life is more than what happens to us. It is what we make it, and I can't lie down and take it while things are going to hell. My spirit is alive and strong and I just couldn't see it, even when you could.

To Rangers_Romance and Panijeziora- for the amazing fanart they drew for my story that inspired me like no other to finish it. Really, I love them beyond reason. It's sort of silly how much I adore them.

To WolfRunner- for making that silly pack with me that we'd get back going with our stories. I kept my part of the bargain! Your turn! :p

And finally to all of you, my readers and wonderful reviewers, who stuck it out with me as long as you did and managed to make it to the end with me. Thank you all so much. I hope you've enjoyed this journey as much as I have.

I do eventually intend to post this story on a site after I finish rewriting pieces that so clearly need rewritten and finish what will be the final draft. I'll be sure to post that here when I get it done.

But for now I want to know: What are your opinions of this story? What did you like? What did you hate? What drove you crazy in a good way? Bad way? What would you change? What didn't make sense? What would you have like to have seen more of?

I'm asking because it is all of you that have helped me make it this far, and now I'd like your input as I go back to write the final version of this story. I definitely need the help, and any feedback you'd like to give me is welcome. :D

Also, be sure to check out my other story I'm working on that is in this same universe, That Was Then, which will further explain Kanoi and Kiya's past. I hope to tied up some of the loose ends from this story in that one. Which is technically a prequel. Don't ask me how my mind works, I can't tell you.

Some other things I meant to tell you: The words Myou Saiken are actually Japanese for "Life Bond" though I'm not sure in what context or to what specific extent. I'd appreciate anyone who knows any Japanese to give me a hand, as I probably use it poorly. Finally, the spell/curse Kanoi and Kiya's parents put on them is a Puro Iunctio. The first word is half of a Japanese word meaning something like protection, and the second word is the Latin for connection. So, it's like the protection connection. Hah. The things I don't realize I do. Anyway, I wanted something that sounded old, as I imagined this sort of thing might be. I also wanted to paint the bad side of having a bond with someone, albeit the bond Kiya and Kanoi share is very different from the one Cam and Hunter share.

So, is there a sequel coming? Not right now, no. I think this is the end of Before We Met… at least for now. You never know what the future may hold.

As I look back at this whole story, all I can really hope for is that all of you weren't as terribly confused reading it as I was writing it. Thank You, and Good Night.

(Pfft, see how cool I tried to be there? Totally epic fail, but whatever.) :)


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